


The Song of Rebellion

by Kiyoche



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alcohol, Comedy, Eventual Romance, F/M, Fluff, Hints of Smut, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Original Character(s), Self-Indulgent, Slice of Life, Suicide Attempt, Teenagers, Violence, slight story change with OC
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-04
Updated: 2017-10-03
Packaged: 2018-12-23 14:57:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 20,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11992110
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiyoche/pseuds/Kiyoche
Summary: Urban legends were a common thing in big cities like Tokyo. The curse of Inokashira Park, Jinmenken, Kuchisake-onna, the list goes on. The most popular one now though, are the Phantom Thieves. A mysterious group of people who are said to change the hearts of the misguided adults.Where was the birth of such a famous legend? In Shujin Academy on April 11th where the cries of rebellion began.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first fanfic on this site and it's on one of the best games of all time, Persona 5! Grammar wise, I hope I didn't make too many mistakes but let me know because while I have read and edited my chapters over and over again, I could've still missed something. This is mostly a self-indulgent fic so please do go easy on me. I was inspired to write my own after reading AristoMercu's [The World Is Ours](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10860252/chapters/24119295)

It was so loud… The city of Tokyo was deafening, no one’s voice could be heard, especially not her’s. The only voices she could hear was from those big shot adults who always spewed lies that would never become truth. She thought that was okay. As long as she didn’t rebel and followed the flow, no one needed to hear her voice. She just wanted them to hear her song but even that was taken away. It was just so deafening…!

**4/11 Early Morning---**

The girl gasped as her alarm rang through the small bedroom. She groggily sat up and yawned, “First day of school…”

She eyed the calendar that was currently on the April page, a big red circle surrounding the 11th. Eri combed her hand through her bangs before idly watching the white strands fall back to where they originally were. She forced herself from her bed and began getting ready for school.

Eri found the turtleneck of the uniform to be suffocating so instead she wore a white button up shirt with a loosely tied black ribbon along with some black suspenders to help keep her school uniform skirt in place. Blue eyes stared back at her as she concentrated on trying to get her white hair into a presentable ponytail. She took one more look at her apartment room before leaving for the streets of Yongenjaya.

She stopped when she stood at the intersection of the main street and the road that lead to Cafe Leblanc. Taking a look at her favorite cafe then back at the time on her phone, she pouted and kept going straight. She can’t afford to be late.

The ride to Shibuya and transferring was a quick and simple travel since she’s done it so many times but nothing beat finally leaving that underground dungeon.

Eri breathed in the fresh air once she arrived in Aoyama-Itchome. Finally, some space! No matter how often she went on the train, the uncomfortable feeling of being cramped in a cart with so many other people would never go away. She looked at the sky, noticing the darkening clouds.

A single drop of rain fell between her eyes, making her flinch. In a matter of a few seconds, it started to downpour. 

She panicked, "Crap...! I didn't bring an umbrella!" Her eyes quickly landed on a nearby store awning where another Shujin student was. She jogged under the safety of the clothed roof, her frown deepening as the rain clapped with the concrete. "Guess I'll just have to wait it out..." The school wasn't too far away so she could afford to wait for a little bit.

* * *

 

It’s official… He’s lost. The boy ruffled his black, messy hair in frustration as he reached into his pocket for his new school ID. His name, Akira Kurusu, promptly spelled right below the Shujin Academy school logo. “It’d be really bad if I’m late to the first day of school…”

The memory of Sojiro Sakura, the man in charge of his probation for the year, scolding him multiple times in a span of a day flashed through his mind. He could tell the man meant well and he was thankful to him for deciding to take him in, he clearly could’ve done worse, but Sojiro’s words honestly did sting a little.

“ _I’m labeled a criminal now…”_

It’s true though, he needed to keep a low profile for the year so he could get off probation and head home, but honestly? He didn’t know if he wanted to. His parents so readily agreed to pack up his stuff and move him all the way to Tokyo from Hitachinaka. Even his friends wouldn’t talk to him after the incident. His eyes wandered to the ground when he thought about the event that changed his life. Was what he did wrong? The woman was clearly in trouble, but for helping her out he ended up getting sued and thrown two hours away from home for a year. Maybe Sojiro was right, he shouldn’t have gotten involved.

“ _But do you regret your actions?”_

Akira’s eyes widened at the voice. He glanced around the busy train station but it didn’t seem like anyone called him. He shook his head, probably from the stress…

Anyway, he had better things to do than mope in a train station. He had to find the Ginza line to transfer to Aoyama-Itchome.

Akira followed the station signs and asked a policeman station there for directions. After a few detours, he made it to the Ginza platform. Looking around the area, he noticed there were a lot more students from Shujin now.

“ _So these are my new classmates…”_ As the train approached, the sixteen year old mentally groaned when he saw just how packed the train was. He followed the large crowd in and found some space in the corner near the train door. He hugged his bag close to him, trying to save as much space as possible as he idly watched the news on the small television above the door opposite of him.

“Accidents, huh?” He did recall that that was the reason for the large traffic jam he and Sojiro were in yesterday. Being in the car with a grumpy old man who was in charge of your probation for about an hour and a half was not something he wanted to do again.

“ _This is Aoyama-Itchome, I repeat, this is Aoyama-Itchome, the time is now…”_

Apparently his daydreaming lasted longer than he thought. Whatever, as long as he could get out of this cramped space. The trains were never this bad back at home...

When the train doors opened, the boy was able to leave the crowd almost instantly. He was glad he got a spot next to the door since he was able to avoid the rush. “It took a while but I finally got here…”

As he walked towards the exit, he could hear some Shujin girls talking,

“Hey, did you hear it’s raining outside?”

“Seriously? I got up early and did my makeup and everything!”

Akira looked up at the exit of the station and it was indeed raining. As he left the station, he quickly took shelter at a nearby store awning. He sighed, great. First he gets lost and now he’s stuck because of the rain.

He took his phone out of his pocket to check the time but the large, strange app appeared again on his phone. “ _No matter how many times I delete this…”_ He let out another depressed sigh.

At the sound of splashing water, he looked up from his phone and saw that another Shujin student had joined him. Her mouth formed into a frown as she watched the heavy rain before muttering something under her breath. 

Feeling someone watch her, Eri stiffened. She turned toward the boy next to her. "What a terrible day to rain, huh?" 

He blinked and closed his mouth. His stare was probably creeping her out... “Oh yeah… I didn’t bring an umbrella.”

The girl giggled. “Yeah, me neither. I’m just no good with those kinda things, y’know?” Eri was honestly kinda surprised, the guy had a really smooth voice. “ _I bet he could sing some really nice ballad songs…”_ She mused.

She leaned back against the store and watched the rain drip from the wiring of the awning. “Still, we might have to make a run for it if this rain lasts too long… Don’t wanna be late and all.” She joked.

The boy only nodded back at her and an awkward silence fell on them as they waited for the rain to pass. Soon, a third person joined the group; wearing their hoodie to avoid the rain, it also acted as a mask to hide their face. After coming in to the shelter of the awning, the student removed her hoodie and a pool of blonde hair fell to her shoulders.

Eri blinked, oh it was Takamaki Ann. There was no doubt in her mind that if Ann decided to become some kind of singer that’d she would be popular. The girl literally grabbed the best genes from her pool and put it to good use. Beautiful blue eyes and golden locks, the girl was the envy of almost everyone. On top of that, she was a model for a magazine. Eri had occasionally talked to her in middle school but they didn't become close until Ann approached her one day and told her that she didn't believe the rumors that were going around about her. Her lips involuntarily quirked at the memory, " _It really helped me back then..."_

“Good morning, Takamaki-san!” Eri greeted.

“Oh, morning Fujimoto-san. Kind of a bad start, huh?” Ann replied.

Eri put her palm on her forehead and arched her back dramatically, “Tell me about it, I completely forgot my umbrella!”

Ann giggled. “I told you, you should just wear a hoodie like me. It’s not like the school cares too much as long as you’re wearing the skirt.”

“But it’s too hot…” Eri whined.

The screeching of car tires followed by two honks took them out of their conversation. The car’s windows rolled down, revealing a man with a squarish face. His eyes met with Ann's. “Good morning! You need a ride to school? You’re going to be late.”

Ann forced a smile, “Sure… thank you…”

Eri watched her friend go into the car, a feeling of worry welling in her. “ _She didn’t sound so excited about that…”_

Kamoshida looked over at the two remaining students, his smile slightly falling as he made eye contact with Eri. “Either of you two want a ride?”

The two both waved a polite no and watched the car drive away. Eri let out a breath of relief when he left, she turned toward her new companion and opened her mouth to say something but someone else cut her off.

“Damn it! Screw that pervy teacher!”

Akira looked over and saw a panting boy around his age. He had the Shujin Academy uniform on, at least part of it. Underneath his sweater was a yellow t-shirt rather than the regular turtleneck and the boy had his pants rolled up too. What was most striking was his obviously bleached hair.

Akira looked back over at the girl next to him and thought back to the other one that just left. Did anyone follow the school dress code? Maybe he could just wear a t-shirt instead. And what did he say…?

“Pervy...teacher?” He repeated.

Hearing Akira, the blonde boy turned around. His face instantly hardened as he shoved his hands into his pocket, trying to look intimidating.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is my first chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it! I have written up to chapter 11 (Just started it) and I will post it every Monday so that I hopefully have time to write more. (Starting University soon).


	2. Chapter 2

“What do you want? You plannin’ on rattin’ me out to Kamoshida?” He asked.

Akira took a small step back, “Kamoshida?”

Ryuji’s eyes narrowed. “Huh? In that car just now. It was Kamoshida.”

Eri quietly looked on at the interaction. Sakamoto Ryuji… She used to hang out with him pretty often in middle school. Well, as often as they could. He was busy training for track and she was starting to get popular, not that it mattered anymore.

Even so, Ryuji still had that grudge on the school’s gym teacher. She gripped her bag, she wouldn’t blame him. Some of the injuries the volleyball players had were just not natural… “ _I mean, they’re covered in that many bruises? I know we’re a national team, but still…”_

She glanced back at the two boys, “Geh…!”

Ryuji was really in the boy’s face now, standing on his toes to glare down at him while the other one just looked away awkwardly.

Eri took a step forward and reached for Ryuji’s bag. She grabbed one of its straps and pulled him away from Akira. “Alright, there’s no need to give him that look.”

Stumbling back, Ryuji’s eyes widened when he turned his neck, “Whoa, Fujimoto? Didn’t see you there. You didn’t take a ride with that dickbag?”

Eri’s brows furrowed as she gazed at the busy streets, “Pretty sure he was just being polite. Doubt he actually wanted me in his car.” The look he gave her was proof enough. “But, why do you hate him so much?”

Ryuji clicked his tongue and looked back at where the car was originally, “He does whatever the hell he wants. Who does he think he is–the king of a castle? Don’t you agree?” He asked the silent Akira.

Akira blinked. Their conversation was just way over his head, he didn’t even know these people. He readjusted his bag, “The king of a castle?”

Ryuji looked at Akira's confused expression, a realization dawning on him. “Wait, you don’t know Kamoshida? Are you for real? You’re from Shujin, right?”

Akira tilted his head, “Are you from Shujin too?”

Ryuji's face scrunched in confusion, “What…? No other high school’s got a uniform like this.” He leaned back more to show the oddly plaid pants he had to wear. He glanced at the insignia on Akira’s blazer. “A second year, huh… we’re in the same grade then.” He readjusted his footing as he inspected Akira more closely. “I’ve never seen you before though. Are you a transfer student?”

Eri's mouth formed an 'O' as she made a fist with one of her hands and hit the open palm of the other. “Oh, that’s why I’ve never seen you before. No wonder you don’t know Kamoshida then.”

Akira slowly nodded, who was this Kamoshida? From the looks of it, he seemed like a regular teacher…

Ryuji looked up at the sky and around the city, “This rain ain’t too bad. We better hurry up, or we’ll be late.”

“Right…” Akira agreed, the three were about to head out until they heard some high pitch noise through the city. They stopped as they covered their ears.

Akira groaned, “ _I feel light headed for some reason…”_

“Ugh… my head hurts…” Ryuji muttered. “Dammit… I wanna go home…”

“Second…” Eri chimed in.

None of them talked to each other as they walked. Ryuji still had a slight pout on his face and the other guy just seemed to be indifferent about everything. His expression was stoic and his form, slightly slouched back with both his hands in his pants pockets, told her he just didn’t seem to care. Eri slowed her step so she could walk with him. “So, you’re the transfer student…?”

Akira nodded, “Yea, I just moved to Yongenjaya yesterday.”

Eri blinked, “Oh you live in Yongenjaya too? Guess we must have missed each other…” She gave him a small smile, “Still, you’re very different from what the rumors said you would be…”

The boy’s eyes widened, “Rumors?”

Eri looked at the wet ground, “Yea… there’s been some nasty rumors all over the internet about a transfer student who’s got a criminal record and stuff… but you don’t seem like that.”

Akira also began looking at the ground and let out a deprecating sigh. So there are rumors about him here too, huh? Guess his goal of sticking to a normal student life is gone… along with making any new friends. It’ll be a lonely year. Though there shouldn’t be anyone who knew about his criminal record other than the staff… Did one of the teachers spread the rumor?

Eri stopped and lowered her voice, “Hey, rumors can be terrible. Trust me, I know first hand. Our school can’t really handle it well, it might be even the talk of the building for a while, but I just want to let you know that I don’t believe in them. You seem like a nice guy so if there’s anything you need, don’t be afraid to ask.”

She looked up ahead at the pouting boy who’s sluggishly walking, “Sakamoto-san too. He seems like a bad guy, but he’s really nice. I’m sure he’ll be willing to help too… Though I don’t know if you want to be associated with us… we kinda got a bad rep in school too.”

Akira’s mouth slightly opened, he was trying to say something–anything to thank her. She was the first person genuinely be nice to him in a long while, maybe since that incident. Hitachinaka was mostly a town for people who worked in Hitachi so word got out fast about his record. His friends’ parents told them they couldn’t talk to him anymore and almost everyone avoided him like the plague. He couldn’t even leave home to get groceries without getting scorn from some residents. And here was a stranger who only knew what rumors told her, offering her hand to him.

Eri tilted her head, “Something wrong? You’re kinda staring…”

Akira closed his mouth, he looked further down on the ground with a tint of red on his cheeks as one of his hands scratched the back of his head. “S-sorry… and thanks. I really appreciate it.”

The two stepped over a puddle as Eri laughed, “It’s nothing really… By the way–”

A chill ran down both their spines and they looked behind them. “Did you…” Akira started.

“Wha?!”

The sound of Ryuji’s voice brought them back from their daze and they left the alley to meet up with him. The boy was leaned over from shock as he stared at the building before him.

“No way…” Eri murmured.

In front of them was not a school, or at least not the Shujin the returning students knew. What was in front of them was a yellow bricked castle that ominously towered over them.

Ryuji turned around to look back at the alley, “We didn’t come the wrong way… did we?”

Eri shook her head. “Not as far as I can tell…”

Akira looked at the stone plate in front of the castle, “Shujin Academy.”

“Yea we’re definitely in the right place but…” Ryuji took another look over the castle. “What’s going on here…? Guess we’ll just have to go in and ask.” The two other students nodded, entering the ominous castle through the drawbridge.

Upon entering the castle, the three students were greeted by a grand hall. There was a scarlet red carpet running down from the stairs, beautifully decorated columns, and shining chandeliers that hung from the ceiling.

Eri’s eyes scanned the room in amazement. No matter how well known her school was, there was no way they could afford all of this.

Akira’s furrowed his brows as he looked around the hall. “ _Either this isn’t our school or Tokyo is just way too different…”_

He turned toward Ryuji, “Where are we?”

The boy’s voice had a slight panic to it when he replied. “This should be the school…”

“It did say Shujin Academy in the front.” Eri assured. She glanced at Akira. “He saw it too so it’s not like all three of us are going crazy.”

Akira nodded, “It definitely said Shujin.”

Ryuji stomped his foot, “Right?! We all saw it so this should be the school!” 

He shook his head in frustration before taking his phone out. “What? Out of service? Where did we end up?”

Eri glanced at her phone and noticed she wasn’t getting any reception either. Panic began to raise in her as she turned toward the boys. “We should probably get out of here. This might be some weird scheme to kidnap people or something.”

Upon hearing her guess, Ryuji took a step back in shock. “What?! They go this far for shit like that now? We should totally bail then.” Ryuji insisted.

The students were about to leave until they heard the sound of metal clanking from a different hall. Turning toward the noise, the high schoolers saw someone wearing a full suit of armor, completed with a sword and shield.

“ _Is that real?”_ Akira asked himself. The sword shone ominously as the knight stopped in front of them. The boy took a half step in front of Eri, trying to look relaxed but still making sure to hide her smaller form behind him.

The armor didn’t seem to faze Ryuji though as his shoulders slacked from seeing another person in this bizarre castle. “Man, you scared me… Who’re you? Another student?”

He nonchalantly walked over to the person, “Man, your costume’s impressive… Is that armor real?” Through Ryuji’s questioning, the armor never replied. Only looking at the group with it’s empty eyes.

The boy crossed his arms, “C’mon, don’t just stand there. Say somethin’.”

Hearing more metal clanking, Eri gasped. She looked over to see one more armored person appear, and then another. Soon they were surrounded.

Akira curiously at Ryuji, “What is this…?” He awkwardly tapped his foot, waiting for Ryuji to say that their school was just weird. Sadly, his hope was in vain. The boy looked back at him with a panic-stricken face.

“Dude, I don’t know!”

“Stop asking questions, and lets get out of here!” Eri urged.

Akira nodded, “Got it!” 

The three tried running to the entrance but they were soon surrounded by the moving armors.

“Ugh what’s with these guys!?” Ryuji looked around for an opening but that gave one of the knights a chance to knock him over with his shield.

“Ryuji!” Eri cried. She tried running to him but the knight behind her did the same thing and knocked her down too. “Oof!”

Akira’s eyes widened, watching his fellow classmates get knocked down. Shit! Just who are these guys?!

“Guh!” He groaned when the knight tackled him with his shield. The minute he hit the ground, he was knocked out cold.

“Take them away!”

**4/11 Morning---**

Eri groaned as her eyes slowly opened. Everything was so blurry and why did her back hurt so much? She gently rubbed her sore back as her eyes adjusted.

“Where am I…?” The last thing she remembered was ending up in some weird castle. “That sure was a weird dream…” She blinked when she noticed she wasn’t in her regular bed… or her room in general. “Huh?” Her panic-stricken eyes scanned the room.

A completely bricked room with handcuffs hanging from the walls and ceilings? And were those bars?! She quickly got up from the floor and noticed Ryuji and Akira were still out cold as well. She ran over to Ryuji first and started shaking him. “Hey, Sakamoto-san! Wake up!”

The boy groaned, “Ugh… five more minutes mom…”

“I’m not your mom!” She shouted. She continued to vigorously shake him until he was finally up.

“I’m up! I’m up!” He whined. He sat up cross-legged, rubbing the back of his head lazily as his eyes adjusted. “Oh… Fujimoto, what are you doin’ here?”

He blinked. “Wait, Fujimoto?!” Now more awake, the boy took in the setting they were in. “Where are we?!”

Eri sighed, “That’s what I’d like to know…” She pushed herself up from the ground. “So us being in a castle wasn’t a dream, huh?”

“Guess not…” Ryuji gulped. He looked over at the sleeping boy who was the only one on the sorry excuse for a bed. “Do you know that guy?”

Eri shook her head, “I just met him a little before you did. Don’t even know his name…”

Ryuji sighed and got up with a groan, pain shot through his lower back. “Gah, they really did a number on us… Either way, lets wake him up and find a way to get the hell outta here.”

“Agreed.”

Ryuji walked over to him and kneeled in front of him. “Hey… Hey, wake up!”  

Hearing Ryuji's booming voice, Akira slowly got into a sitting position as he cradled his head with one of his hands. He slouched down and looked ahead, the ominous bars in front of him waking him up. “What…?”

“You feeling alright?” Eri asked. She held her hands together behind her as she waited for the boy to adjust.

“Yeah… I’m fine.” He croaked. How long was he out? His throat felt so dry...

“I see…” Ryuji muttered. He kicked a small pebble before letting out a frustrated growl. “Guh! What’s going on?!”

He ran toward the closed bars and began banging against it. “Hey, let us outta here! I know there’s someone out there!” Sadly there wasn’t anyone who replied. He walked back to the group, even more frustrated. “Dammit, where are we!? Is this some kind of TV set…?”

Eri held her chin with her index and thumb. “Is this really some kind of slave ring going on?”

A terrifying scream that echoed through the cellars broke their train of thought.

“Th-The hell was that just now?” Ryuji stuttered.

They ran toward the bars, hoping to catch a glimpse of the screamer. A few seconds later, more screams rang through the prison.

Eri gasped as she covered her mouth with her hands. She took a step back from the bars. “No way…”

Ryuji also took a step back. “Guys, this is real bad…!” He turned around and his eyes started scanning the small room for some sort of opening. “Isn’t there some way outta here!? C’mon, we gotta do something!”

The three started looking through the room; trying to find something that could break the bars or possibly some sort of secret exit but to no avail.

“There really is nothing here…” Akira muttered.

Hearing the familiar clanking getting near, Eri looked back at the bars and peered through it. “Guys, they’re coming!”

Soon, a number of knights stood in front of their jail cell. “Be glad that your punishment has been decided upon. You’re charged in unlawful entry, thus you will be sentenced to death.”

Ryuji’s eyes widened, “Say what!?”

“No one’s allowed to do as they please in my castle.”

The guards took a step back and the last person they expected to see showed up in a gaudy crown and a king robe. “Wait… Kamoshida?”

“Kamoshida?” Akira asked.

Seeing the surprise on their faces brought a proud smile to his face. “I thought it was some petty thief, but to think it’d be the lowlifes of the school...Are you trying to disobey me again, Sakamoto? It looks like you haven’t learned your lesson at all, huh?” He looked toward Akira and smirked. “And you brought a friend this time… because neither of you can do anything for yourself.”

Eri physically flinched back at his words. She turned away from him and loosely wrapped her arms around herself for some form of protection.

Ryuji rattled the bars, “This ain’t funny, you asshole!”

“Is that how you speak to a king? It seems you don’t understand the position you’re in at all.” Kamoshida taunted. “Not only did you sneak into my castle, you committed the crime of insulting me–the king.” He smirked as he jokingly put his hand to his chin. “The punishment for that is death.”

He raised his arm to order one of the knights, revealing he was wearing nothing under that king robe other than his underwear. “It’s time for an execution! Take him out!”

The knight closest to him brought out a ring with keys and unlocked the cell.

Seeing that there was no longer a barrier between him and those monsters, Ryuji took a step back in fear. “S-stop it.”

One by one, the knights filed into the small prison until Akira, Ryuji and Eri were pushed all the way to the back.

“...Goddammnit…!” Taking in a breath to steel his resolve, Ryuji charged at one of the knights and knocked him down. “Hragh!”

Ryuji turned to Akira and Eri, “I ain’t down for this shit! C’mon we’re getting out of here!”

Seeing a knight try to sneak up behind him, Eri ran from behind Akira and tackled the unsuspecting knight. “Watch out!” The knight also fell back and for a second the two felt they could escape. Their small victory was short-lived; however, when the other knights towered over them and easily knocked them down with their shields.

“Nnngh…!”

“Ow!”

Ryuji was knocked into the wall, he held his stomach as he slowly fell from the pain shooting through his body.

Eri fell to the ground, a cry of pain escaping her lips when one of the knights stood on her already swollen back to pin her down. Akira instantly tried pushing through the knights to his help his new classmates but they easily overpowered him. “Let me through!” He shouted.

“J-just go!” Eri shouted.

“Get outta here…! These guys are serious!” Ryuji warned.

Kamoshida smirked, “Oh? Running away are we? What a heartless friend you are.”

“H-he ain’t a friend.” Ryuji coughed.

“He’s just someone we met… in the streets!” Eri added.

Akira’s eyes widened at their comments. His mind replayed Eri’s words.

_“If there’s anything you need, don’t be afraid to ask.”_

_“Sakamoto-san too. He seems like a bad guy, but he’s really nice.”_

His feet were planted to the ground, his body shaking. No! This isn’t a time to worry about whether or not they considered him a friend! Their lives were on the line!

“C’mon, Get up and go!” Ryuji insisted.

“What’s the matter? Too scared to run away?” When Akira didn’t reply, Kamoshida scoffed. “Hmph, pathetic scum isn’t worth my time…” The smile on his face returned when he looked back at the groveling blond in front of him. “I’ll focus on this one’s execution.”

The remaining knights picked up the boy like a rag doll and had him hung up at eye level to Kamoshida. With a crazy gleam in his eye and a smile as if he was thoroughly excited, he began beating Ryuji to a pulp while shouting out insults.

“Take this you lowly scum! Useless pest!”

He brought his fist down on Ryuji’s head, forcing him out of the grip of the knights and onto the floor.

Eri stared in horror as she watched her friend weakly try to push himself up. He was literally black and blue, bruises already beginning to form from the abuse. She was trying her hardest to form some words… anything! But her voice wasn’t there! “ _Why can’t I say anything!”_ All that came out was a rasping noise.

She looked at the ground in defeat when Kamoshida spit on him…

” _Please…”_

“Huh? Where’d all that energy from earlier go?” He taunted. The knight picked up the boy by the back of his blazer and threw him across the room. “A peasant like you isn’t worth beating.” He took a step toward Ryuji, his towering form looking down on the beaten and wounded high schooler. “I’ll have you killed right now.”

“ _Please…”_ Eri pleaded in her mind. “ _Please st–!”_

 _“_ Stop it!”

She gasped, a voice rung through the eerie prison, shouting the words she desperately wanted to say. She craned her neck and saw that it was Akira who shouted it. He bravely stood in front of the king with a look of rage.

Kamoshida turned around. “Hm…?” He began to walk toward Akira, “Don’t you dare tell me you don’t know who I am?”

He got into Akira’s face and glared back at him. “That look in your eyes irritates me!” He raised his leg and kicked Akira in the stomach, sending him to the ground.

Though Akira made a gasp of pain, he didn’t stop glaring at the self-proclaimed king.

“Hold him there… After the peasant, it’s his turn to die. I’ll save the girl for last.” Kamoshida disgustingly licked his lips as he eyed the white-haired girl. Understanding the implication of his words, Eri couldn’t help but start shaking like a leaf at the thought. Knights surrounded Ryuji, towering over him with their sword at the ready.

Akira growled and tried making a run for the blonde boy again but the remaining knights easily pinned him against the wall.

“N-no…! I don’t wanna die!” Ryuji cried.

“ _Ryuji…!”_ Eri cried out in her head. She put both her palms on the floor and tried using all her strength to push the knight’s foot off her back but the knight retaliated with more force; shoving her back on the ground. “Gh!”

She helplessly watched on as the knight raised Ryuji by the collar and aimed his sword at his heart. “ _Please… someone… anyone!”_

Akira struggled against the grip of his two assailants, sweat rolling down his face as his heart rate increased. If he didn’t do something quickly, Ryuji, Eri, him… all of them were going to die!

“ _What’s the matter…? Are you simply going to watch?”_

“This voice…” His eyes widened as he looked around the room. “ _It’s the same one I heard at the train station.”_

_“Are you forsaking him to save yourself?”_

_“Death awaits him if you do nothing.”_

_“Was your previous decision… a mistake then?!”_

Images of the incident of that night flashed in his mind. He growled. “It wasn’t!”

Akira continued to struggle against their grip, as the sword was getting dangerously close to Ryuji. “No, no, no…”

“ _Very well… I have heeded your resolve.”_

A flash.

All of a sudden his body felt like it was on fire, every part of his body hurt. It felt like his muscles were being torn apart…!

“ _Vow to me…”_

_“I am thou… thou art I…”_

Hot... it was so hot...!

_“Thou who art willing to perform all sacrilegious acts for thine own justice!”_

_“Call upon my name, and release thy rage!”_

He screamed in pain. It felt like something was just torn out of his body!

_“Show the strength of thy will to ascertain all on thine own, though thou be chained to Hell itself!”_

Akira felt a rage like no other boil within him. He confidently shouted his next words, “That’s enough!”

Kamoshida’s smirk left his face, “What was that…?” He turned around.

The knight behind him dropped Ryuji, allowing the boy to gain some much needed air. “You desire to be killed that much? Fine.” He flicked his chin to the knight that was left to Akira and the bodyguard complied, shoving his shield into Akira’s face and knocking his glasses off. They soon surrounded him and pinned him against the wall with the staves of two spears on his neck. The third knight who held a sword stood in front of him. It raised its sword, ready to strike down Akira.

“ _I’m not going down like this!”_ He screamed in his head. He felt a surge of power burst around him, sending a large wave a wind through the whole room.

“Huh…” He felt something on his face… what was this? He needed to get it off… get it off get it off get it off! He ripped off the mask, his skin coming off with it as a large amount of blood splattered on his face and clothes. He cried in pain as he finally removed it, a sense of relief overwhelming him. No… it wasn’t relief. It was power! He smirked, the blood burned off his face as his body was covered in demonic flames, a sinister laugh echoing through the prison. With a flourish, he released the chains holding down his arms and a burst of wind, stronger than the last pushed everything to the walls. The knight holding Eri down with his foot was blown back, finally allowing the girl the freedom to get up.

“What the…” She stared. The boy she met earlier was now in a different attire. Though that was the least of her worries. “ _What is that … thing behind him?!”_ It resembled a demon. Wearing a red suit and with wings as dark as night, it laughed sinisterly as it was covered in blue flames.

“ _I am the pillager of twilight–Arsene!”_

“ _I am the rebel’s soul that resides within you. If you so desire, I shall consider granting you the power to break through this crisis.”_

Akira clenched his fists, “Give me your power.”

“ _Hmph, very well…”_

“Who the hell are you…?” Kamoshida glared. “Guards!” The shattered knights quickly repaired themselves, “Start by killing that one!” Kamoshida pointed. The knights leaned back and convulsed, their armors disappearing to reveal two floating pumpkin heads with a witch’s hat and cape. “You’ll learn the true strength of my men!”

Akira got in a battle stance, something that felt so natural to him. Even the blade in his hand felt like he’s been wielding it for years.

“ _Detest the enemies before you. Transform your animosity into power… and unleash it!”_

Akira did as he was told, sending a wave of darkness beneath one of the pumpkins and killing it.

“ _That skill was called… Eiha.”_

The remaining Jack-o-Lantern charged at him, hitting him with its lantern. Though the damage was minimal.

“ _Swing your blade!”_

Akira looked at the blade in his hands and a look of resolution gleamed through his eyes. He ran towards the Jack-o-Lantern, slashing at it a few times before jumping back. With a cry, the Jack-o-Lantern disappeared.

“ _This power of mine is yours! Kill them however you want, run wild to your heart’s content!”_

And with that, Arsene disappeared.

With no more enemies remaining, the high Akira felt was disappearing and his rationale returned. “ _What are these clothes?”_ He raised his arms and looked down. Bright red gloves and a stylishly black overcoat. He had to admit, they’re pretty cool.

With the room quieting down, Ryuji uttered the question everyone wanted to ask. “What… what was that just now…?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed it! We've got a long journey ahead of us.


	3. Chapter 3

The three didn’t have time to think about the events that just transpired as Kamoshida angrily stomped over to Akira.

“You little…!”

Thankfully, the pain had finally numbed down for Ryuji. He forced himself up and charged at Kamoshida, knocking him down. The king cried in surprise as he fell.

“Ha, you like that, you son of a bitch!?” Ryuji gloated.

“The key!” Akira shouted.

Eri eyed the fallen keys and made a run for it, grabbing them by the ring. “Got’em! Let’s go!” The three sprinted out of the cell and Eri locked it behind them. “Okay, it’s locked!”

Hearing he was locked in his own cell, Kamoshida promptly got up and gripped the bars. “Damn you!”

Ryuji turned to Akira. “Hey…! What was that just now!?” His eyes looked over Akira once, “And… your clothes…!”

With a flash of blue flames, Akira’s new clothes disappeared returning him back to his Shujin uniform.

Ryuji took a step back from the flash of light, “Whoa, it went back to normal…!?”

With a hard tug, the bars made a loud rattling sound. “You bastards!”

The students jumped back in surprise, Akira stood in a stance that showed he was ready to fight at any time. 

Ryuji rubbed his head in frustration, “God, this is effin’ nuts!” He cursed. This wasn’t the time to complain, they needed to get out of this place! He turned to Akira, “Anyways, let’s scram! You lead the way!”

The three ran off toward the only exit of the cell. Hearing the keys jingle in her hands, Eri threw them into the river with a grunt. Hoping to lock this king up forever. She turned toward Ryuji, “Hey, how’re your injuries?”

The blond narrowed his eyes and his hand instinctively went to his stomach, “Hurts like a bitch but I’ll be okay. For now, lets just focus on getting the hell outta here.”

Eri nodded in agreement. “Right.”

They stopped at a locked door. Since they didn’t have a key, Akira tried opening the door with brute force but nothing worked. “Gh, it’s not opening…”

“For real!?” Ryuji shouted. “Dammit! Let’s try and find another way through!”

Eri clenched her jaw. The more time they spent at dead ends, the more time it allowed those weird knight monsters to find them. They had to find another way fast. Looking to her right, she noticed the other side of the river had its exit opened along with a broken bridge that stretched far enough for them to jump over. She ran over to the edge. “Guys, I think I found a way out.”

“A bridge… Looks like it’s broken though…” Ryuji described. But he soon noticed the extra landing space the broken bridge would give them. His eyes widened as he looked at Eri. “Wait, you think we can jump over?”

The girl smiled and nodded, “Hope you still got some of those hurdle skills ‘cause you’re gonna need them.” She took a few steps back to give herself a running start, taking a deep breath to calm herself, she took off and jumped. She gracefully landed on the other side, surprising even herself. “Alright!” She cheered. She turned around, the adrenaline clearly still coursing through her body. “Okay guys, your turn!”

Akira stared, maybe it was from her quick thinking or confidence or even her looks, but the black-haired boy couldn’t help but be mesmerized by her for a second. He shook his head. This was not the time to be thinking about that right now. He glanced at Ryuji, his expression told Akira that the boy still had doubts about jumping. He didn’t know him very well, but even he could tell Ryuji seemed like the guy who would be motivated by competition. He faked a confident smirk, “See ya on the other side.” Akira followed Eri’s example of a running start before also landing on the other side. Guess he was lucky his parents made him take gymnastics for so many years.

Ryuji growled, “I ain’t going to be the only one who’s stuck here.” He wearily touched his knee, “Don’t fail me now…” Taking a few steps back, he let out a cry as he charged to the edge and jumped. His arms flailed as he was airborne for a few seconds before he clumsily fell to the other side. He groaned in pain as he heard footsteps heading towards him. He looked up to see two different hands reach out to help him up.

“Good job Sakamoto-san!” Eri praised.

Akira smiled as he nodded, agreeing with what the girl said.

Ryuji grabbed their hands and they pulled him up. “Heh, of course I’d make it.” He looked at the exit, “We can keep goin’ this way.”

The three continued to follow the path, having to jump across the river again once they noticed the exit on their side was blocked off again.

However, they started to panic when they saw that the exit on this side was closed off as well.

“Okay, now what?” Eri asked.

Ryuji looked around, “Maybe there’s some kind of secret path or somethin’? This is a dungeon.”

Akira nodded, he looked around the area and noticed an open cell right next the gate that blocked their way to what hoped was the exit. He ran into it and looked around.

“Another jail cell…?” Ryuji complained.

Akira’s eyes caught sight of a large opening on the wall. “We could go through here…”

The other two followed his gaze and they excitedly smiled. “Alright, good job man!”

“Now we can continue.” Eri added.

Akira nodded, bending down, he army crawled to the other side of the wall. The remaining two looked at each other, waiting for the other to get in.

Eri faked a cough, a light blush dusted her cheeks. She placed her hands on her hips and took a more obvious stance, trying to give Ryuji the hint that he should go first.

Finally taking the hint Ryuji’s face reddened. “Right! Sorry ‘bout that.” He started crawling through the tunnel but stopped, “Hold on, my bag is stuck!” After a few tugs, he continued to the end of the tunnel with Eri following.

They left the open cell and saw a draw bridge. Ryuji’s shoulders slacked, “Thank god we don’t gotta jump again.”

They ran over to the other side and followed the slope down.

Ryuji glanced around the dirty jail cells. “The hell is this place…?”

Eri’s ears perked when she heard clanging metal coming closer. She grabbed their shoulders and pushed them down behind a few crates. “Hide!”

They peeked their head over the crates and saw some knights on the other side, running back to where they just came from. Eri sighed, thank goodness they found that crack. If they were still over there they might’ve been caught.

“Over there… They’re lookin’ for us, right?” Ryuji whispered. He clenched his fists, “I ain’t playin’ along with this anymore! We gotta find a way outta this goddamn place!”

The other two nodded and they got up and started following the path again, starting with a long wind of stairs.

“If this goes up, you think it heads to the exit?” Ryuji panted.

“Lets hope.” Eri replied.

The three finally got to the top, a singular door in their way. “Is this the exit?” Akira asked.

“Hey, let’s get the hell outta this place!” Ryuji urged.

Akira nodded and pushed the two doors opened, only to be greeted by the same sight they saw earlier.

“Dude… you gotta be jokin’...” Ryuji uttered. “This ain’t the exit!? What the hell is this place?”

Eri panted, “We just gotta keep going… it’s not like we have a choice.” Luckily for them, the door was opened at this section, allowing them to proceed without doing any crazy stunts. As they ran, Ryuji stopped his feet to look at the cages that hung above the rapid river.

“H-Hey… Look…” The other two stopped. Eri gasped when she saw a fellow Shujin student in the cage, though his face was hidden with some sort of helmet.

“We really did hear people screamin’... So we ain’t the only ones who got captured!” Ryuji stared, “Is...Uh… He ok?”

The three wanted to help him but with the currents so fast and the guards possibly chasing them, they had to swallow their pride and continue running. As they ran further down the road, they saw a raised bridge along with a statue of Kamoshida. With no other way to move, the three continued down to the end of the path, hoping to find a different way across. As they ran, they passed cells with other Shujin students as well, each battered or completely unconscious. Reaching the end with nothing to show for, Ryuji stomped his foot. “Dammit! How the hell’re we supposed to get outta here!?”

“...Hey, you three.”

Eri turned toward the voice, the other two following her gaze. The last they expected to see was a cat with a yellow scarf standing on his two hind legs.

Ryuji gasped, “What is this thing!?”

Akira’s eyes widened, “ _A cat…?”_

“You’re not soldiers of this castle, right!? Get me out of here!” The cat begged. He pointed a paw to the singular key on the ground. “Look, the key’s right there!”

“We’re tryin’ to get outta here! I mean, you obviously look like an enemy too!” Ryuji warned.

Eri gave him a weary eye, “I don’t think they’d lock up their own soldiers though, I don’t think he’s our enemy.”

The cat purred, “The beautiful lady knows what she’s talking about.”

Akira tilted his head in confusion, “How is this cat talking…?”

His words seemed to have set the creature off, “I am NOT a cat! Say that again and I’ll make you regret it!”

The three stiffened when they heard the heavy footsteps of the knight. They were close enough that even Akira and Ryuji could hear them. “They’re catchin’ up already…!”

Ryuji took his phone and groaned, “Shit, there’s still no service, ain’t there any way to contact someone outside!?”

Eri and Akira take their phone out as well to check but shook their heads dejectedly.

“How the hell do we get out…?”

The cat smiled, “You want to know where the exit is? Let me out and I’ll take you there. You don’t wanna get caught and executed, right?”

Akira glared, though he had to agree with Eri’s logic that they wouldn’t just lock up their own soldier, he wasn’t completely convinced. “You better not be lying.”

“I’m not lying! It’s the truth!” The cat begged.

Ryuji looked at the two with doubt, “This thing sounds like it’s all talk.”

Eri shrugged, “It’s not like we could do anything else.”

The three stood there in debate but the footsteps were getting closer. “If you don’t hurry, they’ll catch you.”

Ryuji glanced at Akira and the boy hesitantly nodded. “F-Fine…” Ryuji grabbed the key from the ground and unlocked the cell. The cat instantly walked out and stretched his arms like a human.

“Ah… freedom tastes so great.”

“Now, where’s the exit, you monster cat!?” Ryuji shouted.

The cat glared back at Ryuji, “Don’t call me a cat! I am Morgana.” He declared proudly, puffing up his small chest.

Ryuji glared, “Shuddup and hurry it up! You wanna be locked up again!?”

Morgana took a step back and pouted, “Okay, okay.” He faced back to where they came from, “Follow me, and stay quiet!” Morgana warned.

Eri watched in amazement as they followed the um… not cat to Kamoshida’s statue.

“No matter how you look at it, it clearly looks like a cat…” Eri whispered.

Akira could only nod in agreement, neither of the two wanting to offend their new found ally.

“So what’re you doing?” Ryuji asked.

Morgana tilted his head, “What does it look like I’m doing? I’m lowering the bridge.” He points a paw at Akira. “You, Frizzy hair. It seems like you pick up on things faster than our Blondie over here. Try checking around the mouth of this statue, ok?”

Morgana took a few steps over to make room for Akira as he studied the treasure. “ _Look around the mouth… huh?”_ Looking at the edges of this man’s weird grin, he could see indents, as if the jaw was to be separated from the rest of the face. He grimaced as he gripped the bottom jaw and pushed it down. The statue’s eyes lighting up a weird yellow as the drawbridge lowered into place.

Ryuji stared in amazement, “How were we supposed to know to do that!?”

Eri rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment, “Well, there was a raised drawbridge with nothing but a weird statue next to it… We should’ve been suspicious…” She looked at Akira, “But good job finding the mechanism to lower the bridge! I would’ve never thought about that.”

Akira gave her a confident smirk and combed through his hair once with his hand, “Guess I’m just a genius.”

Eri giggled, “What is that?”

Ryuji groaned, “Ugh! Do your weird little flirting thing later! Let’s get out of here first!” He didn’t wait for their response as he ran across the bridge, never noticing the dust of pink on the cheeks of his fellow classmates for accusing them of ‘flirting’.

Eri puffed her cheeks and grumbled about Ryuji jumping to conclusions as they ran after Morgana and Ryuji with Akira following behind her.

Hearing the sound of metal, Eri sped up her pace and grabbed Ryuji’s arm and tugged him back. “Wait, get back!”

The sudden pull surprised the blond enough for him to fall back, only stopping his fall with his arms. “What the hell Fujimoto? We have to–” He faced forward and screamed. “A-aah! Shit… shit, it’s them!” He pushed himself further back as the knight approached.

Akira sprinted in front of them, his clothes changing back to the mysterious trench coat with red gloves in a flash of blue flames. “I’ll handle it!”

Morgana clicked his tongue and used Ryuji as a spring to jump in front of him. “You amateur!” He taunted. “You two stay still.” Morgana looked back and pointed at Akira, noticing his new change of clothes. “Hey you, You could fight, right? Let’s go!” With a spin, Morgana looked up, “Come, Zoro!”

A pillar of blue light shone behind him, summoning a large, male spirit with a cape and rapier.

“Y-You got one of those things too!?” Ryuji exclaimed.

The knight in front of them convulsed and its armored dissolved, revealing their enemy to be a Jack-o-Lantern and an Incubus.

Morgana crossed his arms, “Hmph, we will promptly shut them up!”

The two worked well as a combo together. It was clear to Eri this wasn’t Morgana’s first battle as he taught Akira about knocking opponents down through weaknesses. It gave her a sense of security knowing they had both Akira and Morgana to fight now. She clenched and unclenched her fist. “ _I just want to get out of here, but I wish I could help…”_

With a final cry, the battle was over and Ryuji and Eri rejoined the other two. Morgana looked up at Akira and smiled. “Not bad, your Persona’s pretty powerful.”

“Persona…?” Eri murmured.

“Y’mean that thing that comes outta you guys all dramatic-like?” Ryuji asked.

“Yes, You saw how Frizzy Hair here ripped off his mask when he summoned it, right?” Hearing of that incident, Akira shivered. It was just about half an hour ago, but the pain he felt while summoning his Persona was something he hoped to never go through again. “Well, everybody wears a mask deep within their heart. By removing that…”

A flash of blue interrupted Morgana as Akira returned back to his normal clothes.

Morgana hummed, “Hm, it looks like you don’t have full control over your power yet.”

Feeling the tension rise with every second they stood there, Ryuji panicked. “That’s enough! This crap doesn’t make any sense!”

Morgana jumped in anger, “Can’t you just sit still and listen for once, Blondie?”

Ryuji stomped his foot, “Don’t call me Blondie! My name’s Ryuji!”

“I’m sorry, but this really isn’t the time to be lecturing any of us right now. I can hear more knights approaching…” Eri interrupted.

Morgana nodded, “The beautiful lady is right. We need to go!” He took a step and then stopped. He grabbed medicine from inside his scarf and handed them to Akira. “Oh, I almost forgot. Use these wisely.”

Taking the medication, Akira hesitantly nodded. “ _Is he giving me drugs…?”_

Morgana turned around, “The exit shouldn’t be too far from here. Let’s go.”

The three followed Morgana as he ran straight up the dark corridor.

“Hey, wait stop!” Ryuji shouted. He slowly approached a cell where a boy around their age was struggling to stay conscious. He wore a red uniform with the number 6 in the back.

“I feel like I’ve seen this uniform before…” Ryuji angrily messed his hair, “Dammit! I’m too flustered! I can’t remember a damn thing.” He looked over at Eri, “Have you seen this uniform before?”

Eri bit the bottom of her lip, “I… can’t remember right now.”

The boy’s eyes furrowed, “Yeah, I don’t blame ya…”

Morgana jumped, “C’mon, lets go!”

“But...” Ryuji hesitated. “Who are these guys?”

“Do you really think you have time to worry about other people right now!?” Morgana scolded. “Besides, they’re–”

“There!”

The raised drawbridge in front of them lowered, allowing the knight from the other side to approach them.

“You should’ve listened to me…!” Morgana chided.

Akira lowered his stance and firmly planted his foot to the ground. He looked at Morgana, “Let’s fight.” With those words, his clothes changed.

Morgana smirked, “I’m glad you stick to your guns.”

Two pixies appeared from the knight and attacked. Akira summoned Arsene and sent a Cleave attack to one fairy, striking it down while Morgana attacked the other with his blade. The fight ended in a flash.

“Alright, let’s go.” Morgana ordered.

Ryuji’s eyes widened, “Hold on, we can’t just leave him here!”

Morgana groaned, “Ugh, you really don’t get it, do you? Hrgh… there’s no time to explain. I’m leaving. If you don’t want to follow, be my guest!” The cat started running across the bridge while the three high schoolers contemplated.

Eri swallowed down the bile as she forced herself to say her next words. “W-we… We need to make sure we’re safe before we can save others.” She declared before running after the cat.

Ryuji clicked his tongue, “Fine. I’m coming!” Akira and Ryuji ran after them.

The three high schoolers relaxed a little when they saw the familiar entrance as they followed Morgana down further into a different hall. He stopped in front of the first room.

“We’re here!”

“Finally! We’re saved…” Ryuji panted. He ran down to the next room and tried opening that door, though it proved to be locked. “Huh… it’s not budgin’. Did you trick us!?”

Morgana rolled his eyes, “Don’t jump to conclusions…” He opened the door closest to him and entered, leaving the other three behind.

“H-Hey, wait up!” Ryuji called.

Following Morgana into the room, the four stopped in front of some empty bookcases. “Where are we supposed to exit? There aren’t even any windows here.”

Morgana groaned, “Amateur… This is the most basics of basics!”

Akira scanned the room and noticed a pretty large opening right above the shelves. “Ventilation shaft?”

Morgana smiled, “Finally, someone who gets it. You should be able to squeeze through one at a time. Oh! But let the beautiful lady go first, and I’m watching you two. No peeping!” He warned.

Eri blinked and gave the cat a smile. “Thanks Morgana.”

“Guess we just gotta get that metallic mesh off first…” Ryuji rolled his shoulders. “And a one… and a two…!” He jumped and grabbed the top of the shelves, lifting himself up. Once he finally got on top, he grabbed the metallic mesh and pulled with all his might. The mesh came off surprisingly easy, so much so that Ryuji ended up falling off the shelves due to exerting too much force.

Eri gasped, “You okay, Sakamoto-san?”

The boy rubbed the back of his head in pain, “Ugh… an enemy soldier didn’t hear us, right?”

Eri shook her head, “I don’t hear any nearby…”

Ryuji smiled, “I can’t believe it! We’re actually getting out of here!” The sense of relief in Ryuji’s voice was very apparent. It almost sounded like he was going to cry.

Akira returned the smile with his own. “We did it…” The whole ordeal had its ups and downs but he was glad to know it was finally over.

“You should wait on celebrating until you actually get out.” Morgana warned. “Now get going!”

Eri’s eyes widened, “Wait, you’re not coming with us?”

Morgana shook his head, “There’s something I’ve gotta do. We’re going our separate ways.”

Akira looked down at Morgana, “Thanks… I don’t think we would’ve made it without you.”

Morgana put his hands on his hips and puffed his chest, “Heh. You’ve got manners.”

The three turned around, and as promised, they let Eri go in the vent first before following. They couldn’t describe their sense of relief when they left the castle walls, but they continued running. It was possible those things could chase them down so they kept running and running until they made it back to the same store Akira and Eri were hiding under earlier.

All three were exhausted from running so fast, their adrenaline finally going away. Akira forced himself to stand up but he honestly just wanted to just sit and fall asleep on the spot. He looked at his other two companions noticing they were in a similar state as him.

Ryuji pushed himself up from his knees, “Did… we make it?”

To check, Akira pulled his phone out to see if he had reception but a voice greeted him instead. “You have returned to the real world. Welcome back.”

“What… did they mean by… returned?” Eri panted. She was not used to running this much. She thought maybe having a large lung capacity would mean she was more in shape but her legs felt like jelly at the moment.

“I think it means we got away…” Akira speculated.

“What was that anyway?! That castle, and Kamoshida, and that weird cat!” Ryuji’s arms flailed as he tried to recount all the crazy events that just transpired. “The hell’s going on!”

Eri flinched at his voice. “ _So loud…”_

Two officers approached the group. “What’s with the yelling? Are you students of Shujin?”

“Cutting classes, are we?”

“Huh? No!” Eri denied. “We were trying to get to school and we…” Her voice faded midway. No way the police were going to believe her about a mysterious castle that tried to kill them.

“What were you three doing?” The officer urged her to go on.

“We were trying to get to school and we ended up in this weird castle!” Ryuji finished.

The two cops looked at each other before sighing. “Hand over your bag. You better not be doing any drugs.”

“Why would you think that?!” He snapped back.

The cops turned to Akira, “Are you his friend?”

Akira gave Ryuji a side glance, the two had declared to Kamoshida that they weren’t friends. Though with what they’ve been through, it’s hard to say they’re strangers either. “Something like that…” He muttered.

“Then you should go to school. Take him with you.”

“Like I’m tryin’ to say…! I don’t know what’s goin’ on either!” Ryuji growled.

“We passed Shujin on the way here and nothing was out of the ordinary about it. If you spout any more nonsense, I’ll contact your school. Is that what you want?”

Akira’s eyes widened, the principal’s warning repeating in his head. No, he can’t get into trouble. “Hey, let’s go.” He might have gotten out of one life-threatening situation, but there wasn’t a vent he could use to climb out of probation.

“W-what? Is that guy for real?” Ryuji asked.

Eri sighed, “Just drop it for now…” She readjusted her bag and followed Akira back the way they came from. Ryuji stuttered a few angry words and followed.

They took the same path through the alley as last time but was thankfully greeted with the actual school. “Is this for real…?” Ryuji muttered. “I don’t understand… what’s going on here?”

“That’s exactly what I wanted to ask you.”

An old man in his early thirties stood at the top of the stairs, staring down at the late students with his arms crossed and a scowl. “We’ve received a call from the police.”

Ryuji kicked a nearby pebble, “That damn cop snitched on us after all.”

The teacher glanced at the two Shujin students standing next to Ryuji. “It’s rare not to see you alone. Where were you roaming around until this time?”

Ryuji looked to the side, “Uuh… a ca-castle?” Even he knew what he said was ridiculous now.

He sighed, “So you have no intention of giving an honest answer?” The counselor looked at Eri. “And you, I thought after that incident last year you would behave yourself. But here you are, ditching class on the first day of school.”

Eri flinched at the critical words of the teacher, “Mr. Shinaba, please, we didn’t–”

“What’s this about a ‘castle’?”

“K-Kamoshida?” Ryuji exclaimed. The threatening king they ran away from earlier stood next to their counselor as if it was nothing.

“You seem so carefree, Sakamoto. Quite a big difference from when you used to do morning practice for the track team.” Kamoshida taunted.

Ryuji growled, “Shuddup! It’s your fault that–”

“How dare you speak to Mr. Kamoshida like that!” The counselor roared. He took a breath to quell his anger, “...There’s not much leeway left for you, you know?”

Ryuji threw his arm back in retaliation, “He’s the one that provoked me!”

“Do you really want to be expelled? In any case, you two have to explain yourself. Follow me.”

“What? This is bullshit!” Ryuji argued.

Kamoshida turned to the counselor, a happy-go-lucky grin on his face.

“ _Completely different from that sadistic smile he had when he was beating Sakamoto-san…”_ Eri glared.

“Come now, I should have been more considerate, too. Let’s just say that we were both to blame.”

“Well, if you say so.” Mr. Shinaba conceded.

Ryuji growled at the way the counselor treated Kamoshida like he was the best thing in the world.

Looking back at the returning students, Mr. Shinaba continued. “Still, you two are coming with me. It’s undeniable that you’re both extremely late.”

The two looked at each other and admitted defeat. There wasn’t anyway to get out of this one. “Fine…” Ryuji answered dejectedly.

Eri gave Akira a disheartened smile and followed the counselor up the stairs with Ryuji.

“By the way, you’re that new transfer student… right?” Kamoshida started. He stared at Akira’s face, a weird sense of familiarity in him. “Have we met somewhere?”

Akira looked away, Ryuji demonstrated to him really well what happened if he mentions the castle. “I… saw a girl in your car.” He muttered.

The teacher’s eyes widened in recollection. “That’s right. I remember now. Well I’ll overlook this, just for today.” Kamoshida glared down at the new transfer student, his voice deepening. “I’m sure you’ve heard from the principal, but cause any trouble and you’ll be expelled. Understand?”

Akira slowly nodded his head. “I understand…”

Seeing how a fellow teacher treated him so differently, Akira had no doubt Kamoshida would make do with the promise of expulsion should he feel like it. The teacher had more influence in the school than he should have.

Kamoshida’s body relaxed after hearing Akira acknowledgment. “At any rate, hurry up and go to the faculty office. I’m sure Ms. Kawakami’s tired of waiting.” He turned around to leave but stopped. “Good luck, trying to enjoy your new school life.”

The boy’s body stiffened and he felt a chill down his spine. That grin he had on, that tone...

“ _There’s been some nasty rumors all over the internet about a transfer student who’s got a criminal record and stuff…”_

Akira stared at the smiling teacher, “ _Could he be the one who spread those rumors?”_ Akira wouldn’t be too surprised, after seeing the _other_ Kamoshida.

As he entered the school, he was quickly greeted by scornful looks and harsh whispers.

“Is that the transfer student with a criminal record?”

“What if you get wrapped up in something because of him? It’s probably best to stay away.”

Akira tried to shut out the whispers as he asked a nearby teacher where the faculty office was.

“Excuse me, I’m new here and–”

“So you’re that problem transfer student.” The teacher started. “Late on the first day, too. You like causing trouble for the school?”

Akira clenched his fists inside his pants pocket. “This is a misunderstanding.”

The teacher scoffed. “Hmph, excuses are useless. Do you even want to be reformed? I bet this is a good sign of what you’ll be like here.” With that last comment, the teacher walked away.

Akira looked at the ground, “ _Fujimoto wasn’t wrong when she said our school couldn’t handle rumors well…”_ Even a teacher treated him like a criminal. “ _Though I guess with my record… I am one now.”_ Akira decided not to ask anyone else and just look for a school map. Luckily, it was posted next to the school bulletin board where some first years were.

Once seeing his face, their face morphed into one of terror and they speed-walked away.

“Was that the transfer student?” The girl whispered to her friend.

“No way! I was so excited for high school and now we gotta deal with a criminal?” Her friend whispered back.

Akira took a saddened glance at them before looking at the map. He’ll just have to live with the rumors…

“ _You seem like a nice guy so if there’s anything you need, don’t be afraid to ask._ ” Eri’s voice rung in his head. It didn’t seem like she was treated well either which surprised him. She seemed like a nice girl and was really pretty too,

“ _I’d like to talk to her again…Sakamoto too.”_ He finally found the faculty room on the map and started heading there, the thought of the seeing the two making his sluggish steps pick up just a little.


	4. Chapter 4

Eri sluggishly walked up the stairs to the second floor. The counselor really gave her and Ryuji an earful… she was lucky she got out. Ryuji was still in there…

“It’s already the end of school… just let the poor guy go.” She sighed, she has completely missed the first day of school. Thinking back to her class schedule, she remembered having a teacher named Kawakami as her homeroom teacher. “I should probably introduce myself to her first.”

The class was 2-D if she remembered correctly. Turning left as soon as she reached the second floor, she saw the same boy she had met earlier with a woman probably around her mid to late 20’s.

“Is this...a castle?” He hesitantly asked.

Kawakami scoffed, “Are you sure you’re okay?” She looked away from Akira’s gaze. “Also… it seems like people are already talking about you, but I’m not the one who told them.” She defended.

She sighed, “I can’t even catch a break… Why do I have to deal with this?”

Eri hesitantly walked up to the two, “Um… Are you Kawakami-sensei?”

The teacher looked over at the new voice, “Yes, that’s me.” Realizing it to be Eri, Kawakami looked disappointedly at the ground. “Oh, it's you.”

Eri nodded, “It’s very nice to meet you, my name is Eri Fujimoto.” She bowed. Once she stood back up, Eri glanced at Akira, making eye contact with him for a split second. “I’m sorry that I missed class today.”

Kawakami rubbed the back of her neck, her face scrunched up in frustration. “Don’t let it happen again, alright?” She looked Eri straight in the eye, “And as a warning, I wouldn’t try anything similar to last year.”

The girl looked away to the ground and nodded. “I understand…”

Eri walked up to Akira, trying to make it look as if she was just walking around him, “I’ll wait outside at the school gate.” She whispered, before walking away to the other classrooms.

Kawakami sighed, “What did I do to deserve this? I have both a national plagiarizer and a student with a criminal record in my homeroom class. Why me…?” She moped.

Akira tilted his head, “Plagiarizer?”

Kawakami shook her head, “It’s nothing. In any case, I wouldn’t get involved with either Fujimoto-chan or Sakamoto-kun. You should head straight home without stopping by anywhere. Sakura-san sounded pretty angry.” With that, Kawakami left for the faculty room.

“ _I guess I should meet up with Fujimoto.”_ Akira was about to leave for the gate when two familiar looking staff walked up the stairs and started talking loudly.

“Why did you allow a student like him to transfer here? He’s already started associating with Sakamoto and Fujimoto.” Kamoshida asked. “A student with a criminal record, the culprit of an assault case, and a national plagiarizer. At this rate, it’d be pointless how much _I_ contribute to the school.”

“Now don’t be like that… This school counts on you, Kamoshida-kun. You are our star.” Principal Kobayakawa praised. “Still, a steady build-up is necessary behind such brilliance as well.”

“Your troubles never seem to end, do they, Principal Kobayakawa?” Kamoshida empathized. “Alright, I understand. I’ll continue to do my best to answer your expectations of me.” He had a large grin on his face from the praise of his boss. The two parted ways after that but Akira stayed.

“Who just tells one of their staff that they’re their star?” Akira muttered. The gym teacher just seemed to have such a bias in this school, it was kind of unnerving. And with how loud they talked in the hallway, it’s no wonder the school found out about his record.

Shaking his head, he walked downstairs toward the school gate to see what the white-haired girl wanted to say.

* * *

 

Feeling a tap on her shoulder, Eri turned around to see her black-haired companion. “Oh hey, you came.” Her eyes darted around the vicinity, noticing the large amount of students leaving. She grabbed Akira’s arm and pulled him behind the vending machines. “C’mere for a second.”

Eri peaked around the corner and saw that there weren’t a lot of people coming their way. She turned around and exhaled. “Phew, looks like we finally get a break.” She smiled at Akira, “Who would’ve thought today would be so… hectic, huh?”

Akira leaned back on one of the vending machines, “Yeah... was what we saw real?”

Eri crossed her arms and looked at the ground in contemplation, “I mean, what are the chances all three of us were hallucinating.” She looked Akira in the eye, “I… want to go back.”

His eyes widened, “What?”

“I know it’s crazy and dangerous, but I can’t shake the feeling that something’s there! This isn’t something we can just ignore, we almost lost our lives…” She gently grabbed Akira’s hand and held it with both of her own. “You’re the only one with that supernatural power to fight those things. Please, I promise we won’t go in too far, I was just hoping to meet up with Morgana again and ask it about some stuff...”

Akira, taken aback by the contact, absentmindedly nodded.  

Eri smiled, “Great! I guess now we just gotta figure out a way to get back…” A sudden realization suddenly struck her, “Oh, y’know we never did do introductions. My name is Eri Fujimoto.”

Akira smiled, “Akira Kurusu.”

“Akira Kurusu-san... “ She giggled, “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Likewise..” Akira pushed himself off the vending machine, “So how are we going to get back there?”

Eri hummed, “Well, at first I thought we should retrace our steps but we technically did that after meeting with the cops…” She snapped her fingers, “Oh yea, your phone said something, didn’t it? Something like ‘Welcome back to the real world.’?”

Akira blinked, now that she mentioned it. He took his phone out of his pocket, and unlocked the screen.

Eri stepped closer to get a better look at it. “Oh yea, that was the app. That weird eye thing.”

She took her phone out of her pocket and jumped back when she saw the same app on her phone. “Huh?! When did this…” She shook her head. “This is really creepy.”

Akira peered over her shoulder, “Mine showed up randomly too…” He leaned back, “We really should get to the bottom of this.” He opened the mysterious app on his phone. Clicking on the history tab, he saw one item on the list. “Kamoshida’s Palace…” The two solemnly looked at each other and nodded before Akira clicked on the location.

“ _Kamoshida...Shujin Academy… Pervert… Castle…”_

The surrounding area pulsated, a pink hue covering everything. Soon, the school distorted into the familiar castle they saw in the morning.

Eri took a few steps back just to look at the building in front of them. “So the castle is the school... “ They weren’t two separate places, they were the same entity. She turned back to Akira, only to jump back. “Y-your clothes!”

Akira looked down and noticed he was back to wearing the black trench coat with a grey colored shirt, along with the red gloves. “To be honest, they look kinda cool.”

Eri leaned on one foot and grasped her chin, “I have to admit, you look pretty handsome in that.”

The boy’s heart skipped a beat as his cheeks flushed at being called handsome, he used one of his hands to try covering his red face. He was pretty thankful his mask hid most of it.

“Hm?” Noticing the tint of red on his cheeks, Eri smiled mischievously.  “Aww is someone blushing?”

The Akira looked away from her, not answering her question.

She giggled before she jumped to spin around, feeling adrenaline begin to rush through her veins. “Alright, I’m counting on you Kurusu-san. We’re gonna get to the bottom of this weird castle.”

“Right.”

They stealthily sneaked back into the castle through the vent they left through earlier. They jumped off the empty book shelves and looked around. “It’s the same as last time…”

Hearing footsteps coming closer to the door, Akira put a finger to his mouth signaling Eri to be quiet. He quietly snuck to the frame of the door and pressed his ears to it, trying to listen in on the soldiers’ conversation. Eri did the same.

“Seems like those damn brats got away…”

“Master Kamoshida was very upset, at least we sort of redeemed ourselves. That cat is back where it belongs.”

Eri covered her mouth to quiet a gasp. Morgana’s been captured…? The two waited for the footsteps to be far away before getting up. Eri anxiously looked at the ground, she cradled her arms as she was deep in thought.

“We should go save it.” Akira suggested.

Eri paused at how quick his suggestion was before she nodded, “That’s what I was thinking. It’s the least we could do for everything its done for us.” With that plan agreed on, the two left the room with the vent and headed toward the cell they last saw Morgana in. They ran across the grand hall, and back into the cellar, from there it was just a straight path across the two draw bridges. They encountered a few knights on the way but luckily, they were able to sneak by them without much trouble, thanks to the darkness of the dungeon.

Turning right, they saw the cell they met Morgana in and their friend who gripped the bars helplessly.

“Morgana!” Eri shouted.

The cat’s ears twitched at his name and he looked over to see two of the high school students he helped from before. “It’s you two! What are you doing here?”

“We were hoping to ask you some things about this world but then we heard you got captured again.” Eri explained.

Morgana’s eyes drooped, “Yea, I got ambushed a little after you three left…”

Akira took a step forward, taking his blade out. “Let’s get you out of there.” With a flick of his wrist, he cut the lock off the bars, freeing Morgana again. The bars squeaked as Morgana ran out.

“Ah, yes sweet freedom. I owe you one.” His eyes narrowed, “Now, lets get out of here before they see us.”

The two nodded in agreement and they started running back to the room with the vent. Oddly enough, there didn’t seem to be any knights roaming around the dungeon anymore. The three finally made it out and was halfway across the grand hall until two knights appeared in front of them in a burst of black. One was gold, and the other was similar to the ones they’ve seen before. Akira and Morgana took out their blades as they readied their stance to fight.

“Fujimoto, stand back.” Akira warned. The girl nodded and took a few steps back

“You peasants again?” The three looked up to see King Kamoshida walk down the grand staircase before standing in front of the knights. “To think you lowly peasants would try enter my castle again.”

“If you would stop imprisoning people and executing them whenever you want, you wouldn’t have that problem!” Eri argued.

Kamoshida glared, “Interesting words from someone who can’t do anything on their own.” He smirked, “Did you think of that yourself? Or did you steal it just like everything else.”

Akira looked back, “Steal?”

Kamoshida smirked, “Oh? You’re letting her hide behind your back without knowing anything? She really will trample on anyone to get her way.” Kamoshida laughed, “They called her the Siren of Japan, an up and coming singer who wrote songs that apparently hit the heart. Though that all came crashing down once everyone found out about her plagiarism.”

“That’s not true! I didn’t plagiarize anything! Those songs were in a notebook that–!” Eri denied.

“Enough of your excuses!” Kamoshida smirked, “As much as I would love to see you shed those tears again. I believe it’s time for you three to die.” He raised his arm, signaling the guards to ready their weapons. “Go, kill them. I want these trash out of my sight.”

The two knights nodded, the golden knight convulsed and transformed into Eligor while the regular knight transformed into a Pixie.

Morgana raised his sword, “No time to think. They’re coming!”

The Eligor came charging at them with his spear, he raised it and sliced Akira from his shoulder to arm.

“Gah!” Akira cried in pain, he fell on one knee as he gripped his injured shoulder.

The Pixie did a twirl and launched a Zio at Morgana, causing great pain to the cat. “Ugh, they got my weakness!”

Seeing her friends in distress, Eri ran to them, “Morgana! Kurusu-san!” She kneeled down next to the beaten Akira before a dark shadow covered their figures. Eri hesitantly looked up, the Eligor towering over them as it raised its spear, swatting Eri across the hall like a fly.

“Guh!”

“Fujimoto…!”

Deeming it their win, the two shadows returned back to their knight form and pinned both Morgana and Akira to the ground.

Eri pushed herself up, one hand hovering over her side from where the pole of the spear hit her. “ _Is something broken…?”_ Seeing hairy legs in front of her blurry vision, Eri helplessly looked up at the triumphant king.

Kamoshida smirked, “That’s a good look on you Fujimoto. You should always be looking up at me like this. Those tears are a nice touch too…” He kneeled down to lift her chin making her have eye contact with him. “It’s over Fujimoto, but let me just thank you for one thing. I’ve made a great deal of money thanks to your talent.”

Eri’s eyes widened, “What…?”

“You lost your notebook at school right? Your oh-so precious book that contained all your songs? Who do you think stole it and sold it to those producers?” Kamoshida smirked, “Y’know, you were going to be my next target. The star teacher helps out the fallen student and guides her back on the path of righteousness. Wouldn’t that be great?”

“Why…?”

Kamoshida laughed, “Why? Because I was sick of hearing your name. The proud Shujin student who healed the hearts of the broken? It disgusted me! I’m the only one people should be talking about when it comes to Shujin’s reputation! Me!” He kicked the arm that was holding her up, making her faceplant on the ground. “Not some pathetic child who didn’t deserve a fraction of the fame she received!”

Akira clenched his fists, he looked at the broken girl who was helplessly shaking and crying. All those looks, all those rumors, her dreams were crushed just because of some petty jealousy?! “Don’t give up!”

Eri glanced at Akira. “Kurusu-san…?”

“Don’t give up! You can fix it, but nothing can be done unless you don’t stand up for yourself.”

Eri’s eyes widened at his declaration. No matter what she said, no matter how loud she said it or how many times, they never listened. She thought they couldn’t hear her voice anymore, that it would’ve just been better to be silent. She pushed herself and wiped the tears from her eyes.

Seeing the fire back in her eyes, Kamoshida instinctively took a few steps back.

Eri matched his steps as he kept backing up. “You’re right, Kamoshida. I am a pathetic child. I cried, I hid, I thought it would just be better for me to be silent...but not anymore.” She angrily stomped her foot. “You WILL hear my voice, you bastard!”

_Thump_

“ _I have been waiting…”_

Eri gasped as a rush of pain coursed through her body.

_“Isn’t it time to stop cowering away?”_

She gripped her chest and fell back down on her knees, hyperventilating as she tried to stop herself from screaming.

_“Who will hear your voice when it is so muffled?”_

_“This falsified self is truly an insult to her.”_

_“The “you” who exists within laughs at this mockery.”_

_“So let us form a contract,”_

_“I am Thou, Thou art I”_

_“It is time to raise the banner, and preach the song of rebellion!”_

With a flash of blue flames, a white, intricate masquerade mask formed on Eri’s face. Her mind was still foggy from the pain but her hand instinctively went to it. She needed to remove it, it hurt to have it on! She forced herself through the pain as she ripped the mask off with one pull. Blood splattered into the air as a pillar of blue flames formed around her. When the light faded, a holy woman stood behind her, wearing a purple armored dress with long blond hair tied into a braid. She held a banner, a symbol resembling an iris beautifully sewn on the flag behind her, raising it proudly as it flapped in the wind. The force of the summoning pushed the weaker knight off Morgana while the other barely held on.

Eri glared down at the false king, her clothes now changed to a white, full bodysuit that hugged her body well. A zipper ran down from the top of the turtle-neck collar to just before her crotch. A brown studded belt hung loosely around her hips as two smaller belts were wrapped on both ends of her hips. Various smaller belts wrapped around her knees, around the wrists of her white gloves and the ankles of her white heels. Opening her palm, a white long sword appeared in a flash of blue flames. She took two practice slashes in the air, forming an X, before she tightened her grip.

“Let my friend go!” She ran toward the golden knight and swung her new sword. The knight had no other choice to jump back, releasing the pressure off Akira and allowing him to escape.

Kamoshida took a few steps back in fear as the two knights ran in front of him, protecting their king. Their armors dissolved back into Eligor and a Pixie.

Akira and Morgana stood behind her in support, both their swords raised and ready to fight. Eri pointed her sword at Kamoshida, “You just stay on that false chair you call a throne. Soon enough, we’ll overthrow you!”

Nodding to Akira and Morgana, Eri tightened her legs to push off. “Morgana, Kurusu-san, please… back me up!” With that call, Eri leaped at the shadows. She slashed three times at Eligor before jumping back to reveal Akira behind her.

“Arsene!” Akira called. He put his hand to his face as the mask evaporated into blue flames. “Eiha!” He ordered. The Persona spread his dark wings as a wave of curse energy shot at the Pixie. It cried out in pain before disappearing.

“Nice Frizzy Hair! One more!” Morgana cheered.

Akira nodded and sent another Eiha to Eligor.

The shadow growled, he rode his horse to Morgana and tried slashing him with his spear but missed.

“Too slow!” Morgana shouted as he jumped in the air to dodge. “Zoro!” The gentleman appeared behind Morgana with a flourish of his rapier. “Garu!”

With the gale of wind, the Eligor was defeated and the only remaining person was Kamoshida himself.

He balled his hands into fists as he gritted his teeth in frustration.

Eri glared at him, “Don’t think for a second that I forgive you for what you did. Jeanne!” The saint appeared behind her in a burst of flames. She raised her flag, an orb of light shining at the tip of the staff. “Tell me where you hid my notebook.” Eri asked with gritted teeth. She was trying so hard not to just send the ball of light and kill this false king as he cowered in fear.

Like a sudden shot in the back, she gasped when a wave of exhaustion took over, she fell down on one knee and panted for air as the Persona behind her dissipated.

Kamoshida laughed, “That’s what you get you peasant! Guards, capture these three!” After his order, Kamoshida ran back up the stairs to somewhere deeper in his castle while more guards came running into the room.

Morgana’s eyes widened, “This is bad, we can’t take them all on! We have to retreat.”

Akira nodded his head, he ran over to Eri and wrapped her arm around his neck while using his other hand to lift her up and give her support.

“Sorry… it’s cause… I couldn’t finish the job…” Eri whimpered. It was so hard to say anything… she was so tired.

“Don’t worry, we’ll come back again and end this with him.” Akira reassured as they ran as fast as they could to the ventilation system. They were able to successfully crawl through the vents and escape the ambush, the three reconvening at the entrance of the castle.

Eri leaned on her knees as she continued to pant for air. “Is this how you always feel…?”

Akira shook his head, “No, it was exhausting the first time but the adrenaline kept me going. It was easier this time.”

“Your body is probably recovering from removing your mask. It’s not easy to just remove something so ingrained in your body.” Morgana informed.

Eri looked at her new white gloves, “So, this is my Persona… “ She looked at her arms and legs and tried twisting her back as much as she could to see her backside. “What is with all these belts? It really makes me look like I’m into bondage or something!” Eri whined.

Akira snorted, he covered his mouth as he tried to stop himself from laughing.

Eri crossed her arms, “What’s so funny?”

“Ignore him, I think you look beautiful!” Morgana complimented.

She jutted her hip out and smiled, “At least someone thinks it looks good.” She exhaled before kneeling down to Morgana’s height. “Hey, Morgana? Could you tell us more about this place?”

The cat blinked, “I would be happy to Lady…? Um, forgive me, but what is your name?”

Eri smiled, “I’m Eri Fujimoto, and the person you keep calling Frizzy Hair is Akira Kurusu. It’s nice to meet you.”

Morgana’s eyes sparkled, “Lady Eri…! I would be happy to tell you anything about the Metaverse!”

Akira looked at Morgana with an exasperated smile, he was such a kiss up.

Eri tilted her head, “Metaverse?”

“It’s a world where people’s cognitions materialize. If someone has a really strong warped perception of a location, it manifests into a Palace. That’s where we are now, we’re in Kamoshida’s Palace.” Morgana explained.

Eri scrunched her face and rubbed her temple. She looked over at Akira, “Do you get it?”

He shrugged, “Kinda… basically, I think it’s what he imagines the place to be?”

Morgana nodded, “Sorta. Only now, it’s been so warped that its messed with the Metaverse.”

Eri put her hand to her chin, “So Kamoshida thinks the school is his castle? And he’s the king?”

Morgana smiled, “Right, and the one in charge of it all is the person’s Shadow. A shadow is the true self that’s repressed-a side of one’s personality they don’t want to see.”

Eri rolled her eyes, “It’s hard to imagine for Kamoshida to be embarrassed about wanting to be king. He acts like one already.”

Akira put his hands in his pocket, “So how did we get in the first time?”

Morgana shrugged, “Beats me. The Metaverse isn’t something people like you should be able to enter. Then again, you two had the potential to awaken your Personas, so maybe you guys were special.”

Eri opened her mouth to ask something but felt her legs get weak. She used her hands to stop herself from falling as she started feeling light-headed.

“Fujimoto?” Akira called, he kneeled down to her and saw how pale her face had become. She subconsciously leaned on his shoulders for support.  “ _She must’ve been holding out to ask Morgana…”_

Morgana’s eyes drooped, “I think you should go back to the real world for now, Lady Eri. Being in that form right now must be taxing on the body. You should return for now so that your body can readjust to reality.” He glanced at the boy, “You should take her home.”

Akira’s eyes widened, “You’re not coming with?”

Morgana’s smile fell, “I still have some unfinished business to do here. Don’t worry, I won’t get captured a third time.”

Akira wanted to protest, but with the state his friend was in, he had to stop himself and just do as Morgana told him. He gently turned around so that Eri leaned on his back instead of his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck. After pushing himself up with her on his back, he nodded to the cat goodbye and walked away from the castle.

“ _You have returned to the Real World. Welcome back.”_

Akira turned his neck back to look at the girl who scrunched her face in pain. She forced her eyes open and gave him a weak smile. “Thanks for this, Kurusu-san. You can put me down now.”

“Are you sure? If you’re not feeling well, I can carry you to Yongenjaya, or at least to the train station.”

Eri shook her head. “No it’s fine…” Her face flushed as she hid her face in Akira’s neck, “It’s embarrassing…”

Akira smiled teasingly, “Oh, look who’s blushing now?”

“S-Shut up!” Eri retorted. Akira chuckled before gingerly placing the girl down to her feet, making sure she could stand before letting her go. She exhaled, “Hey, do you… wanna go back…? Tomorrow?”

Akira’s eyes widened, they just escaped two life-threatening situations and Eri wants to go again? Though, considering the revelations she discovered today, it’s no wonder she would want to go again.

“I mean, these palaces are people’s distortions right? So whatever is in that castle, it probably shows all the truth about them…After finding out about Kamoshida stealing my songs, I want to know what other damage he’s done. I also think there might be some clues on where he put my notebook. There’s no way anyone would hear my accusations in the real world so I’m going to take matters into my own hands.”

Akira nodded, “Alright, I’ll go with you.”

Eri smiled, “Thank you so much Kurusu-san! I feel much better with you at my side.” She looked at the sky, noticing the darkening orange hue. “It looks like it’s going to get dark soon, we should probably head back to Yongenjaya.”

Akira gasped and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Crap… Boss is probably gonna kill me.”

“Hm? Boss? Oh, you know the owner of Leblanc?” Eri asked.

“Yea, he’s my guardian for the year.” Akira explained. Man, he’s going to get an earful. Not only did he basically skip school, he’s also returning late.

Eri hummed, “Why don’t I join you then? I can’t really help with missing school, but I can make some kind of excuse about why you’re coming home so late.”

Akira’s shoulders slacked, he’ll still yelled at, but at least Eri will be there to hopefully soften the blow. With that decided, the two to walked to Aoyama-Itchome’s station in peace.

 

. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Eri FINALLY gets her Persona. Which is Jeanne d'Arc, the holy maiden of France. There's really nothing thievery about her but I thought her being burned at the stake for being accused a witch fit well with the theme of being wrongly accused. Also, my inspiration for Eri's Palace outfit is from Nero-Bride from Fate/Extra CCC. I was thinking of like a skin-tight suit since you don't want it getting caught on things while being a thief but honestly some of the other Phantom Thieves outfits just do not seem practical. (At least they're stylish). Above is how they both look (Jeanne on the left, Nero on the right), can you see I'm a huge Fate fan?  
> (Note: Eri's hair is still in its regular ponytail and her thief outfit does not have the long frills on the waist, the lock around her neck, nor the veil)


	5. Chapter 5

**4/11 Evening---**

Akira stood in front of Cafe Leblanc, his body visibly shaking as he tried to force himself to open the door. He could see Sojiro through the glass of the window, looking visibly pissed as he continued to smoke his cigarette. He turned to the girl by his side and was about to ask her to open the door but was shocked when he saw Eri was shaking just as much as he was. “What? W-Why are you scared?”

“S-Shut up! Boss is scary when he’s mad…!” Eri whimpered. She stiffly turned toward the exit of the the small alleyway, “Well, Kurusu-san, I’ll see you tomorrow!”

He frantically grabbed her shoulder, “What happened to making an excuse for me?”

“T-That was before I saw how pissed Boss was!” Eri retorted.

The ringing of the door bell signaled the end for their chance to escape. They stiffened as a shadow towered over them.

“O-Oh, hey boss. I was thinking of stopping by to say hi…” Eri greeted.

“I was just about to come in…” Akira started.

The glare of his glasses hid Sojiro’s eyes from them but the way he stood, arms crossed and a deep scowl on his face, told the two they weren’t going to get away easily. “Akira, get in now.”

Akira coughed, “Y-Yes sir.” He quickly speed walked into the cafe, taking a seat in the farthest booth from the door.

Sojiro exhaled a breath of smoke before turning to Eri. “You should head home before it gets too dark.” He turned around and was about to close the door when Eri’s voice stopped him.

“W-wait!” Eri cried. Sojiro turned around, he raised a brow and prompted the girl to continue. “Kurusu-san… he was late to school because of some unfortunate circumstances and I held him up on the way back. He didn’t do anything bad!” She defended. She bowed, “Please, don’t be too hard on him, boss!”

She felt the man’s hand pat her head, “Second day here and he’s already got someone apologizing for him.” Eri stood up from her position. “Don’t worry, I’m just going to give him a light scolding. Doesn’t matter the circumstances, Akira’s got one hell of a year going for him. I just want to make sure he can survive it and continue his life as a normal student.” He whispered. “But I gotta keep my pretense as a tough guy so don’t let him know, okay?”

Eri blinked before smiling. “Thank you again boss. I’ll come visit as a customer soon.”

Sojiro chuckled, “You better.”

Eri stood on her toes to look over Sojiro’s shoulder to shout to Akira. “Hey! I’ll come here tomorrow morning, so lets head to school together, okay?”

The boy’s eyes widened before returning her smile and nodded. Eri leaned back on her heels in satisfaction. She said goodbye to Sojiro and left for her house with a spring in her step.

Sojiro watched her go before turning around. “So, I got an interesting phone call from school today...”

* * *

 

Closing the door behind her, Eri exhaled, the darkness of her home bringing her comfort. She leaned back on her door before sliding down to the floor. Exhaustion finally hitting her full-on. There was just too much to register… She almost lost her life twice, there’s a thing called a Metaverse, she awakened her persona, and most importantly, she found out what caused the incident that changed her life forever.

“I don’t even know where to start…” She looked up at the bleak white ceilings. Blaming the plagiarism on Kamoshida would fall to deaf ears. The only proof she had were the words from the Kamoshida in the castle and there’s no way anyone would believe her about that. To be honest, she already accepted the fact that the songs written in that notebook were a lost cause. She listened in every time someone different sang the songs she wrote. If she remembered correctly, almost all those songs are now the property of someone else now… all except that one.

“I don’t care how many songs he stole, that’s the one song he can’t take!” Eri clenched her hands as the memory of her mom and her flashed in her mind. They were sitting on the piano chair, composing a song together. The only song they ever composed together.

“ _Mom! Someday, I wanna perform this at that theatre you love so much!” A 12 year old Eri declared._

_Her mother smiled, “You mean the New National Theatre? I would be so proud to hear this song there. Eri, I know you have the talent and drive to make it there.”_

Shortly after, her mother passed away from a disease, leaving only her and her father behind.

“I need to get that song back… it’s the only thing I have left...” She forced herself off the ground. Suddenly, her stomach rumbled loudly and Eri gripped her stomach in an over-dramatic manner. That’s right… she missed lunch and dinner because of what happened today.

“Guess I’ll grab something to eat first…”

**4/12 Early Morning----**

Akira groaned. He covered his ears with the pillow, trying to drown out the noise of rain outside. “Five more minutes…” He didn’t sleep well that night. He dreamt that he was a prisoner again in that weird jail called the Velvet Room. Rehabilitation… Metaverse Navigator… Personas? Everything that weird man said was all so groggy. A drop of water fell on him, jolting him awake. Looking up, he saw that there was a slight leak on his roof.

“ _Not surprised, this place is old…”_ Why’d it have to be on top of his bed though?

“Hey Akira, how long are you planning on sleeping? You’re going to be late.” Sojiro shouted. “Eri’s been waiting for you.”

Akira blinked, oh right! Eri did tell him she was going to walk to school with him. Wide awake now, he flung the sheets off and got ready for school. When he walked down, he saw that the white-haired girl was enjoying some coffee while talking to the owner.

“So I’ll have one of your curries to go, Boss.” Eri requested.

Sojiro raised a brow, “Y’know it’s going to get cold, you sure about that?”

Eri shrugged, “It’s raining too hard for me to run to the convenience store, and I don’t like the cafeteria food.”

He sighed, “You really should learn how to cook, you can’t live off convenience store food.” Hearing the squeaking of a chair, he turned toward the newcomer. “Oh, so you’re finally up. Here, I made you some coffee.”

Akira muttered a thanks before picking up the cup and taking a sip. The drink instantly warming him up.

Eri peered at his face from his right, “Morning! It’s raining again today, huh?”

Akira smiled, “Yea, do you have your umbrella today?”

Eri triumphantly raised her wet umbrella, “Wouldn’t make the same mistake two times in a row!” Looking up at the clock, she pushed herself off the seat and took her wallet out.

Sojiro stopped her, “Don’t worry about it. It’s on the house.”

“But…” She argued.

He placed the packaged curry on the counter before leaning back on one foot, “Just think of it as compensation for taking this guy to school.” He nudged his chin to Akira.

Eri blinked before sighing in defeat. “I’ll pay you next time.” She put the wallet back in her pocket before straightening out her skirt. “Alright Kurusu-san, let’s head to school.”

Akira nodded and downed the last of his drink. “Thanks for the drink.” He grabbed the umbrella that was leaning on the counter and followed Eri as she left with the curry.

The two made it to the train that would take them to Aoyama-Itchome, Akira was able to find a spot near the exit again and Eri was able to squeeze in with her smaller frame. She held onto the train pole as it started to travel and the two stood there in silence.

After a while, Eri heard her phone ring in her bag, she released her grip on the pole and searched through her messy bag to find it. Opening her phone, she looked at the notifications to see that it was a message from Ryuji.

“Oh, Sakamoto-san?” She muttered to herself. She was just about to read it until the train hit a pretty big bump, Eri could herself being forced toward the door and braced for impact. Instead, she felt strong arms wrap around her frame, holding her firmly to stop the momentum. She looked up to meet Akira’s steel eyes and gave him an apologetic smile. “Sorry about that.”

Akira looked away, a hue of pink dusting his cheeks. It was the first time he’s ever held a girl so close before… He awkwardly released his hold on her, and the girl went back to holding onto the pole. “It’s fine.”

Eri glanced down at her phone.

**_Ryuji:_ _Yo did you know that guy we met yesterday has a record?!_ **

**_Eri:_ _Yea, there were a lot of rumors online about him._ **

**_Ryuji:_ _No wonder that guy was so gutsy!_ **

**_Ryuji:_ _Anyway, meet me at the rooftop after school today. If you see that guy, bring him too._ **

**_Eri:_ _Wait, isn’t that place closed off?_ **

Eri blinked and waited for a reply but she never got one.

“What did he say?” Akira asked. He sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, “Sorry, I saw who you were talking to by accident.”

Eri shook her head, “It’s no big deal. Seems like Sakamoto-san wants to talk to us after school on the rooftop. It’s probably about what happened yesterday.” She stretched her arms and moaned in relief. “I just wanna hurry up and get out of this cramped space…”

“ _Aoyama-Itchome, this is Aoyama-Itchome, the time is…”_

“Oh! We’re here!” Eri rejoiced.

Akira could only smile as the girl hummed a happy tune, she rocked her head back and forth, making her pony-tail swish like a happy dog’s tail.

**4/12 Morning---**

Once they got off the train, the two chatted about anything while they walked to school, distracting themselves from the stares and whispers of other students. As Akira walked through the school gate, he was thankful that he actually made it to school on time without any weird accidents.

The two traveled up the stairs to the second year floor, and made their way to their respective seats. Akira noticed that Eri’s seat was behind his in the next row. He gave her a small smile before turning his neck toward the window and watched as droplets continuously rolled down the glass with ease. It kinda reminded him of his younger self. How he would cry at every little scrape or whenever his parents would yell at him. Akira was so lost in his own thoughts that he never noticed that the teacher had walked in.

An old man wearing a white shirt with a purple tie and suspenders stood behind the black podium with a scowl as he introduced himself. “I’m the social studies teacher Mr. Ushimaru. I’ll be teaching you the rules of society this year.”

He hummed as he scanned the classroom, “You all look like you’ve been spoiled growing up. Before we learn society’s rules, maybe I should start with the rules of being a decent human being. You there, the new kid.”

New kid? Was there another student? Akira turned toward the teacher and realized he was looking at him. He straightened his back and refocused his attention at what the teacher was going to say.

“The Greek philosopher Plato divided the human soul into three parts. A soul is composed of appetite, spirit, and what else?”

Akira blinked. “Logic.” He answered.

Ushimaru looked pleasantly surprised, “Correct. So you knew that, huh?” He turned back to the rest of the class. “Plato’s teacher, Socrates, said that evil is born from ignorance. People who’ve been babied, taught that evil is due to individuality, can only become society’s scum.

“Wow, he got it right… is he really a delinquent?”

“He seems like a punk, but maybe he’s actually serious about studying?”

Hearing the whispers of the class, Akira rubbed his neck bashfully. He was glad he remembered learning about this last year in his old high school. Maybe if he kept this up, the rumors would go away.

“Bizarre incidents have been occurring frequently. Those are but the actions of such scum. We don’t need crude people like that in this school. Understand?” The class muttered a reply before the teacher nodded and continued his lecture.

**4/12 After School---**

Hearing the final bell ring, the teacher left for the faculty room as students began packing their bags. Eri picked up her school bag and walked up to Akira, “So, how was your unofficial first day of school?”

Akira put the final notebook in his bag and the two started walking out the room. “It was fine, could do without the stares and whispers though.”

She gave him a sympathetic look, “You’ll get used to it…”

Now that she mentioned it, Akira never did ask about the details the other Kamoshida talked about. About Eri’s false plagiarism. He opened his mouth to ask but she stopped him.

“Let’s go meet up with Sakamoto-san.” She said abruptly.

“ _So she doesn’t want to talk about it…”_ Part of Akira was hurt she didn’t want to share with him but he quickly brushed that aside. They’ve only known each other for two days, it only made sense for her to not want to share such a personal story with him. “ _I hope… we get close enough that she does feel comfortable about it.”_  

“Right.”

Turning toward the staircase, they saw Ann being stopped by Kamoshida. Eri gripped the handle of her bag and gritted her teeth as he walked up to her friend with such a carefree smile on his face. “ _After what he’s done…!”_ Her eyes darkened into a stormy shadow as dark thoughts flashed through her mind.

Feeling Eri’s seething anger, Akira gently placed a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her. Right now was definitely not the time, no matter how justified it was.

“You looking for a ride home? Things have been pretty dangerous lately with all those accidents.” Kamoshida offered.

Ann looked away, her eyes never meeting Kamoshida’s. “Sorry, I have a photoshoot today. It’s for the special summer issue, so I can’t afford to miss it…”

Kamoshida sighed, he put his hands on his hips and readjusted his footing. “Hey, now… Being a model’s fine and dandy, but don’t work your pretty little self to the bone.” He lectured. “You mentioned you weren’t feel well, right? Something about appendicitis?”

Ann meekly nodded, “Yes. I keep planning to go to the hospital, but I’ve been too busy… Sorry to worry you.”

Kamoshida shifted in his place, “You must be lonely too. I feel bad for keeping your best friend at practice so often. That’s why I asked you out in the first place.” Feeling someone stare at him, Kamoshida looked over to Akira and Eri’s direction. “Oh, and… be careful around Fujimoto and that transfer student. They both have pretty unsavory records after all. If something were to happen to you…”

Ann, feeling uncomfortable about the way he talked about her fellow classmates interrupted him. “...Thank you. Please excuse me.” She murmured before walking away.

Kamoshida watched as the blond model left before angrily clicking his tongue. After Ann was out of sight, he walked toward the faculty room.

“Be careful around Fujimoto and that transfer student. They both have pretty unsavory records… blah blah I’m a pervert!” Eri sarcastically imitated. She stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry in his direction.

Akira covered his mouth, trying to hide his laughter. “What are you, a kid?”

Eri pouted, “Poor Takamaki-san… she has to deal with his creepiness and the rumors of all those other students…” She turned toward Akira and smiled. “And thanks for before, I don’t know what I would’ve done if you weren’t there to calm me down.”

Akira returned the smile and nodded, “We’ll figure something out. Let’s go see Sakamoto.”

The two walked up the stairs until they reached a small floor with a singular door. The corners were dusty and there were a lot of random cleaning supplies lying around. Eri gingerly turned the doorknob, looking back at the stairs every five seconds to make sure nobody was gonna come up. Opening the door, the two were greeted with a gust of wind and the sunset’s blinding rays.

“Yo, you two finally showed up.” Ryuji greeted. He sat behind some old desks that were next to the roof’s storage room.

Eri placed her bag on a nearby desk and sat on the edge. Akira stood by her, hands in his pockets, waiting for Ryuji to begin this impromptu meeting.

Ryuji looked at Akira, “Sorry to call you up like this. I bet people like Kawakami already told you stuff like “don’t get involved with them,” huh?”

Akira blinked, “How’d you know?”

Ryuji leaned his chair back even more and gave a half-hearted chuckle, “We’re pretty much in the same boat.”

Ryuji planted his feet on the ground, his chair landing back on all four of its legs with a thud. “Heard you got a criminal record, everyone’s talking about it.”

Akira nodded, “ _Wish I didn’t…”_

Ryuji’s face scrunched as he slouched his back and leaned on his knees. Akira could tell he was going to say something serious. He walked closer to the blond boy and leaned on one of the desks opposite to Eri.

“...What was all that that happened? You know, how we almost got killed at a castle… It wasn’t a dream… right? You guys remember it too, yeah?”

“Yeah.” Akira agreed.

Ryuji looked down dejectedly, “Well, just ‘cause we remember it doesn’t mean much though…”

Eri wanted to interrupt him but she wanted him to let out all of his thoughts before telling him about what they discovered.

Ryuji nonchalantly leaned back, “I mean, even if it was a dream, you saved us from Kamoshida. So yeah… Thanks Akira.”

Akira blinked, “How do you know my name…?”

Ryuji confidently smiled, “Don’t underestimate my intel. I got people.”

Eri sighed, “More like everyone just won’t stop talking about him.” She pushed herself off the table, awkwardly playing with her hands behind her back as she tried to think of a way to tell Ryuji. “So… About the castle…” She glanced over at Akira and he gave her a reassuring nod. “We found a way to get back.”

Ryuji’s eyes widened as he stood up, the force pushing the chair back with a squeak. “Seriously?! Why wasn’t I a part of this?”

“You were still stuck with Mr. Shinaba…”

The boy scoffed, “Yeah, that old kiss-up wouldn’t shut up about how ‘disrespectful I was to Mr. Kamoshida’.” He mocked. “Anyways, you two went back?”

Eri nodded, “Yeah, we were only planning on looking around some more but we found out Morgana was captured so we went to go save him again. Afterwards, we were ambushed by that other Kamoshida where he told me…” She gripped her forearm as his taunting played in her mind.

“ _I made a great deal of money thanks to your talent.”_

“That he was the one who stole my notebook…”

Ryuji furrowed his brows, “Your notebook…?” A sudden realization hit him. “You mean the one you lost?!”

Eri slowly nodded, “Yeah…”

Ryuji slammed his fist on a nearby desk, “Dammit! How many lives does that asshole have to ruin?! I knew something was off when they called you a plagiarizer!”

Eri looked at the ground, “There’s nothing I can do now… no one believed me then and they won’t believe me now.”

“Why didn’t you come to me? I would’ve helped you.” Ryuji asked.

“You were training for nationals… what was I supposed to do? Ask you for help during the most important time of your life?” She stomped her foot, “There’s no way in hell I could’ve done that!”

Ryuji growled, “I ain’t some scumbag that would ignore a friend in need! If you needed a voice to back you up I would’ve done it in a heartbeat! Instead, you decided to ignore me and start hidin’ away like some coward!”  Ryuji grabbed Eri by the collar and made her look him in the eye.

The two were really at it now, they glared at eachother with fury Akira never thought the two could have. Fearing the two would actually resort to violence, he grabbed their shoulders and pulled them apart. “That’s enough. There’s no need to argue!”

The air stilled as the two panted from shouting.

Eri straightened out her wrinkled shirt, “I’m sorry I never asked for your help… Ryuji. I didn’t know you felt that way.”

Ryuji awkwardly kicked a small pebble, “Yeah, well. I should’ve done something instead of waiting for you to ask.”

Akira blinked and breathed out a breath he didn’t know he was holding in.

Ryuji smirked and pointed at Akira with his thumb, “This guy though, did’ya see the look on his face?”

Eri laughed, “Yea, he looked really scared!”

Akira pouted at his two laughing friends, “What was I supposed to feel? Sakamoto was grabbing your collar! You two looked like you were gonna fight any second.”

Ryuji scoffed, “Should’ve seen us when we were younger, me and Eri would fight all the time.”

Akira's eyes widened, “Sakamoto… you punched a girl?”

He laughed, “With that flat chest, she looked more like a dude!”

Eri blushed and used her arms to cover her now more developed chest. “You pervert!

Akira gave the boy an exasperated look. Where did all the tension go…?

Ryuji pointed at Akira, “By the way, quit calling me Sakamoto. Ryuji’s fine.”

“Oh, Eri’s fine with me too!” The girl added.

“Alright, Ryuji, Eri-san.” Akira tested the names. They sounded right, he could assume they’re friends, right?

“Eeeh? What’s with the ‘san’? Just call me Eri, Kurusu-san.” Eri whined.

“Akira’s fine too…” He added. “Eri...san.” What the hell. He couldn’t do it!

The two looked at him with an exasperated expression, “Dude…” Ryuji muttered. “Wait! Does that mean you have less respect for me? Since you could say my name without any honorifics!”

Akira shook his head, “No, it’s not like that at all. Ryuji… just seems… easier to talk to?”

“Does that mean I’m harder to talk to?!” Eri accused.

Shit, he just cannot get out of this unscathed. “No, that’s not it Eri-san. I just feel like I have to give you an honorific for some reason…”

Eri huffed, “Well, it’s fine I guess…” She leaned back on a desk, “Back to the matter at hand. What should we do now? I want to go back and find some evidence on where he stashed my book.”

Ryuji nodded, “I want to go back too… We saw other guys held captive here yesterday. I’m pretty sure they’re from our school.”

“Then it’s unanimous. Let’s go.” Akira took out his phone and looked for the app.

“Wait, how do we get there? I didn’t see any castle on my way here.” Ryuji asked.

Eri crossed her arms and smirked, “Just wait and see.”

Akira clicked on his recent history and found Kamoshida’s palace. Again, the area distorted around them before they appeared at the entrance of the castle.

“Huh… So no matter where we start, we’ll still be at the entrance?” Eri muttered to herself.

“So this castle was here… I wasn’t dreaming.” Ryuji turned toward his friends and jumped back. “Yaargh! Your clothes!”

Akira and Eri looked at their hands and noticed they were wearing gloves again.

Akira shrugged, “Shouldn’t be too surprised now… It was like this yesterday too…”

“Like this yesterday? What’s with those outfits?!”

Akira tilted his head, “Not bad, huh?”

“Y-You like those?!” Ryuji shouted. He pointed at Eri, “And is that you, Eri?!”

Eri confidently put her hands on her hips and smirked, “What do you think? Pretty cool, huh?”

Ryuji snorted, “What's with the outfit? Didn’t peg you for a bondage kink.”

Eri felt her face heat up at the quip, “I don’t have a bondage kink!”

Akira awkwardly played with a strand of his hair, “I think it looks pretty good.”

Ryuji playfull jabbed his friend on his side, “Yea, cause it's good on the eyes.”

Akira could feel his face heat up, “No, it's not because of that…!” Okay, maybe a little…

Eri sighed, she rested her forehead on her fingertips as she shook her head in exasperation. “I'm surrounded by a bunch of perverts…”

“Hey!”

Morgana peeked through one of the columns before running to them. “Stop making a commotion.” He warned.

Ryuji gasped, “Ah… you?!”

Morgana glanced at the castle, “The shadows started acting up, so I came here wondering what it could be… To think you guys would come back to the entrance when you barely managed to escape.”

Eri kneeled down, “Sorry Morgana, but there are some unfinished things we have to do here.”

“Well, you two should be fine. But I don’t know about this one…” He muttered as he watched Ryuji walk around the premise of the entrance.

“What is this place?... Is it the school?” Ryuji asked.

Morgana nodded, “That’s right.”

“But it’s a castle!” He emphasized.

“This castle IS the school. But only to this castle’s ruler.”

“Ruler?” Ryuji asked.

“Kamoshida…” Eri muttered. “Morgana explained yesterday, it’s like how Kamoshida imagines the school to be, right?”

Morgana smiled, “I knew you would get it, Lady Eri! It’s how his distorted heart sees the school.”

“How he imagines the school to be? Distorted…?” Eri could almost see steam coming out of his ears as Ryuji tried to process the idea. “Explain it in a way that makes sense!”

Morgana sighed, “I shouldn’t have expected a moron to get it...”

“What’d you say?!” Ryuji challenged.

A sudden scream echoed through the castle, breaking their conversation. Eri sprung up from her position and both her and Akira readied their stance.

“What was that?!” Ryuji asked.

“A scream…” Akira muttered.

Morgana stretched his arms nonchalantly, “It must be the slaves captured here.”

“Slaves…?” Eri asked.

Another scream of pain.

“Oh shit, it’s for real…!” Ryuji cried.

“They’re most likely there on Kamoshida’s orders.” Morgana guessed, “It’s nothing out of the ordinary; It’s like that every day here. What’s more, you three escaped yesterday. Not once, but twice. You even helped me out. He must have lost his temper quite a bit.”

“That son of a bitch…!” Ryuji cursed. “...This is bullshit!” He charged at the gate of the castle. “You hear me, Kamoshida?!”

“Ryuji, calm down.” Akira ordered.

Morgana nodded, “He’s right. Doing that isn’t going to open it, you know. Still, it seems you have your reasons.”

“Hey Monamona!” Ryuji called.

Eri felt an exasperated sweat roll down her face, “That wasn’t even close…”  
“It’s Morgana!” The cat corrected.

Ryuji ignored him. “Do you know where those voices are coming from?”

“You want me to take you to them…?” Morgana repeated. He thought about it for a second. “I guess I could take you there, but only if they come along.” He looked over at Eri and Akira.

They looked at each other before nodding, “Let’s go”.

Morgana jumped with joy, “It’s settled then!”

Ryuji smiled excitedly, “For real…? Thanks guys.”

Morgana smiled, “Alright, lets do this! Follow me!”

The three followed the cat as he ran back to the familiar vent they escaped through last time.

“You’d think they would patch this up after all the times we’ve used it…” Eri pondered.

“This is our infiltration point.” Morgana explained. “Not barging through the entrance is one of the basics of a phantom thief.” He stealthily jumped up to the barrel and into the vent. “I’ll make sure to teach you as we go. Come on, follow me!”

Watching the cat disappear, Ryuji looked back to his friends. “Sorry for draggin’ you two into this. I just can’t forgive that bastard Kamoshida doin’ whatever the hell he wants!”

Eri grinned, “I have my own reasons for coming along. We should really be apologizing to you, Akira. You just moved here, you really don’t have a reason to come along.”

He shook his head, “To be honest, he’s really giving me some bad vibes. The teachers pamper him so much, and I feel like he was the one who spread the fact that I have a criminal record. I have plenty of reasons to check this place out as well.”

Ryuji’s brows furrowed, “Wouldn’t be surprised if that was him. He seemed really against you coming here.”

“Anyway, we’ll probably find out more if we see that other Kamoshida. Let’s follow Morgana.” Eri advised.

With that, the three followed Mona’s example and entered the castle through vent.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHH! I'm really sorry guys! Yesterday was so hectic and busy I didn't have the time to post. T.T Hopefully, you guys enjoyed the chapter that was supposed to be yesterday's!


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